Prince William kisses son Louis in adorable photo by Kate Middleton, palace shares picture on Christmas day
Although Prince William and Kate Middleton are frequently pictured with their elder children — Prince George and Princess Charlotte — rarely do the shutterbugs ever get a glimpse of the youngest child of the Royal couple — Prince Louis.
Even rare is catching members of the Royal family in a candid moment, as most of their photo ops are staged and perfectly poised.
So when the Kensington Palace shared a black and white photo of the Duke of Cambridge, 37, planting a kiss on his youngest son, in what was clearly was not part of an official photoshoot, it was pretty special.
In the adorable snap, which was posted on the Christmas Day, Prince William was seen planting a peck on one-year-old Prince Louis' cheek as the latter's siblings smiled at the camera. Charlotte, 4, appears to be holding on to her younger brother as she stood behind him, while George, 6, sat next to them in a chair, smiling cheekily.
"This photograph of the Duke of Cambridge, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis was taken by the Duchess of Cambridge in Norfolk earlier this year," the tweet was captioned. It was not mentioned exactly when the photo was taken.
The Duchess of Cambridge, 37, who is one of the most photographed people in the United Kingdom, also carries an innate passion for photography herself. She was named as the new patron of the Royal Photographic Society earlier this year, which honored the photographer in her.
Kensington Palace has often published photos taken by the Duchess, especially her photographic portraits of her children — Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis — which marked the milestones in their lives such as their birthdays and early days in the nursery.
Kate gave rise to the tradition of taking the photographs herself when she took official portraits of Princess Charlotte for the first time in 2015 rather than hiring a photographer.