Harry and Meghan are embroiled in a controversy over hypocrisy after it was revealed that a tree was digitally inserted into the photo used to announce the Duchess' second pregnancy. The Sussexes edited a tree in the background using Photoshop while announcing Markle's 2021 pregnancy, the Daily Mail reported.
On Tuesday, sources close to the couple weighed in on the social media backlash surrounding Kensington Palace's photo editing mistake, following revelations that the Princess of Wales acknowledged "experimenting with editing" on the Mother's Day photo featuring herself with her children. They said that Harry and Meghan would have been "annihilated" if they had committed the same Photoshop error as Kate.
Harry and Megan Manipulated Photo
The sources also noted that the Duchess of Sussex is unlikely to have made such a mistake due to her meticulous attention to detail. However, a recently resurfaced podcast has now revealed that the intimate black and white photo of the couple used to announce her second pregnancy in 2021 was doctored.
London-based photographer Misan Harriman has previously spoken about modifying a photo of Harry and Meghan in a meadow to show them under a willow tree, the outlet reported.
A close friend of the Sussexes revealed during an appearance on the Private Passions podcast on BBC Radio 3, "It's amazing what you can do with technology," while explaining the process behind creating the final image. He referred to it as "virtual shooting."
Following the revelation that the picture-perfect photo used for Harry and Meghan's second baby announcement was doctored to include a willow tree in the background, royal expert Angela Levin slammed the couple's team as "hypocrites."
"A tree was doctored in their photograph to create a special backdrop so how dare their camp say anything about Catherine's?" Levin told the sun, according to the Daily Mail.
In the resurfaced recording of Harriman on the Private Passions podcast, the photographer said, "My most well-known virtual shoot is the portrait I took of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announcing their pregnancy."
Harriman disclosed that he captured the photo remotely since he was in a different location from the royal couple during the pandemic. He used technology that enabled him to communicate with the Sussexes, instructing them on how to pose while remotely "pressing the shutter" from a completely different location.
"They weren't actually under a willow tree, were they? They were lying outside in a meadow, weren't they?" the podcast host asked.
Harriman replied: "Yeah they were lost in their love, at home, in their garden, comfortable, celebrating new joy."
Controversy after Controversy
The revelation comes as reports suggest that the Princess of Wales is "feeling miserable" following a social media backlash triggered by a photoshopped image released by Kensington Palace on Sunday in mark Mother's Day.
Bizarre and baseless conspiracy theories were fueled by the digitally manipulated photo of Kate, 42, and her children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five, particularly after international news agencies issued cease-and-desist notices regarding the photo.
Amid concerns that the conspiracy theories could escalate, several people have suggested that the speculation might be quelled if Kensington Palace were to publish the original, unedited photo of Kate and her children before the photo had been edited.
Season royal watchers may recall that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex addressed their own 'photoshop-gate' incident similarly when they were accused of modifying their 2019 Christmas card featuring Prince Archie.
