Prince Louis, the youngest child of Prince William and Princess Catherine, turned 6 years old on Tuesday, and the royal family continued the tradition of releasing a birthday photo of their youngest son.
The Prince and Princess of Wales shared the photo on their social media channels, CNN reported.
A royal source told CNN that the photo released Tuesday was not edited. It is the first photo released by the Waleses since the family weathered controversy over photo editing in March, when an official image of Catherine and her three children — Louis and his older siblings Prince George and Princess Charlotte — was released and then removed from circulation after it was found to be manipulated.
Catherine calls herself an “enthusiastic amateur photographer” and has frequently taken photos of her children that are released to the public, People reported. She admitted that she edited the shot of her and her children last month and apologized.
“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day,” she wrote on social media at the time.
Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 11, 2024
The photo was released after weeks of speculation over the princess’s health. Days later, Kate announced she had been diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer, adding that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
She had undergone abdominal surgery in January. The cancer was found in post-operative testing, ABC News reported.
A message from Catherine, The Princess of Wales pic.twitter.com/5LQT1qGarK
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 22, 2024
A previous photo depicting Queen Elizabeth II and her grandchildren was also found to have been digitally manipulated.
The photo of Louis released in honor of his birthday was said to have been taken by Catherine at Adelaide Cottage, The Telegraph reported. That information has not been independently confirmed by media outlets including CNN.
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