Prince William and Kate Middleton's new approach to family photos makes all the difference - and fits in with public 'personas'
They marked three family occasions in a specific, linked way and their choice says a lot about their royal style
The Prince and Princess of Wales's wedding anniversary falls in between Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte's birthdays, giving us three new royal pictures to look forward to in a very short period of time. This year's photographs felt like part of a unique set and this isn't surprising as they were all taken on their holiday to Cornwall over Easter.
We've seen some overlap in the past, but this is the first time so many of William and Kate's official snaps were obviously shot over the same, private trip. The couple also posted follow-up videos giving even more personal glimpses of their children enjoying themselves on the beach.
These three pictures and the clips show them as a family like any other, taking us behind the scenes on a holiday we'd never have known about otherwise. Instead of focusing on giving each a separate feel with their own background landscape like they've done before, the Prince and Princess totally leaned into the connection.
Their choice made these posts seem like part of a holiday album and emphasised the down-to-earth quality. Although the backgrounds were slightly different in each one and they're all beautifully shot by Matt Porteous, the focus was more on presenting them as the family they truly are, rather than as picture-perfect royals.
The videos were the epitome of this and we got to see Charlotte stroking their dogs Orla and Otto on board a boat and bowling a cricket ball on the beach - likely to Louis who also played cricket in his video.
To an extent the Wales kids have always been seen in this modern, playful way in their parents' posts, though I think that the future King and Queen are forging ahead with this even more. They've got their own way of doing things and in recent years this has been clearer than ever.
Tradition is still important, but William and Kate's first priority is their children and they prefer being more low-key as senior royals. Messages are often signed off with their initials and they're happy to appear in selfies with fans and even offer occasional hugs.
Every royal generation has their own style and King Charles is doing things differently to Queen Elizabeth too. In a recent episode of her and Reverend Richard Coles' Catching Up With The Royals podcast, expert and woman&home correspondent Emily Andrews said that the late Queen was happy to be seen in a more relaxed way after the Queen Mother passed away.
"People have said that Queen Elizabeth's sense of humour was always there but it was after the death of her mother that she felt she could be a little bit more relaxed in her public persona. She felt she could be more funny, more jovial," she declared.
Prince William and Kate are seemingly keen for their public personas to be very approachable and the Prince of Wales once said that his grandmother was supportive of things evolving.
"She likes that we have our own style. It's a new generation, and there's no point in everyone doing it the same way. It's the modernisation of the Royal Family that keeps it interesting and relevant," he said.
