MANILA, Philippines – Multiple news agencies have taken down a photo of Kate Middleton with her family following concerns the image may have been manipulated or digitally altered.

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The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, and Reuters, alongside Getty Images, released kill notifications, or instructions for retracting the photo, which was released by Kensington Palace on Sunday, March 10.

The image came alongside her first public message since undergoing abdominal surgery in January.

According to the Associated Press’ kill notification shared by Chris Ship of ITV News, “at closer inspection it appears the source has manipulated the image.”

The Associated Press added in a report, “The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand.” 

In a social media post on March 11, Middleton, who also goes by Catherine, apologized for “any confusion” caused by the photograph posting.

The post, bearing her initial C, said, “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.”

The BBC earlier reported the image of Middleton and her children – Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte – was taken by Prince William, and is the first official photo released of her since she was last publicly seen on December 25.

News organizations hold strict guidelines on the usage of manipulated photographs, such as adding notices if a photograph has been altered or changed from its original, or allowing only minor touch-ups for quality or image visibility purposes, depending on the organization. – Rappler.com