Kate Middleton and Prince William have released two photographs with their baby son Prince George.The proud new parents look happy and relaxed in the informal images, which were taken by Kate’s father Michael Middleton in the garden of the Middleton family home in Bucklebury, Berkshire, in early August.
Kate looks radiant in a fuschia wraparound dress, and with her hair in loose curls, as the couple pose with their baby son under the shade of a tree in the garden. One photograph shows mother, father and son, while the other includes the couple’s cocker spaniel Lupo along with Tilly, a retriever owned by the Middleton family.
Baby George is seen sleeping soundly in the photographs, and is wrapped in the same merino wool shawl as when he was carried by his parents from the Lindo Wing at St Mary’s hospital the day after his birth.
The couple were also keen not to disrupt George’s routine with a formal photoshoot. Prince William admitted that George "doesn’t want to go to sleep that much, which is a little bit of a problem,"
The modern Duke and Duchess of Cambridge broke with tradition by issuing personal family photographs in lieu of an official royal portrait and by releasing the photographs on Twitter. Throughout history, portraits of royals have been captured in the form of professional photographs, paintings and sculptures. "Kate has a great eye for pictures and wants the first official ones of George to be natural and in a relaxed environment," explained a source before the photographs were released.
The couple had been expected to opt for a celebrity photographer. Mario Testino, a friend of William’s late mother Diana, Princess of Wales, took their official engagement photos while Hugo Burnand took the photographs at the couple’s royal wedding in 2011. He says of the royal couple, "I love them. They are just so nice as individuals and as a pair, and they work so well together."