Princess Kate and Prince William’s little-known private photographer now pivotal to royals

Princess Kate and Prince William have employed the services of Millie Pilkington for many years, with some of her pictures now going public.

Ever since Princess Kate married into the Royal Family, she has been keen to give fans a glimpse into her and Prince William’s family life with charming portraits released for special occasions.

For events such as Mother’s and Father’s Day and their children’s birthdays the couple post a new picture to their social media, often a less formal and more relaxed take on royal life.

While many of these images are taken by Kate herself, her private photographer Millie Pilkington has been a firm favourite of the Prince and Princess of Wales ever since their wedding in 2011.

For their big day thirteen years ago Kate and William’s official photographer was Hugo Burnard, who had previously worked for King Charles and Queen Camilla.

However Ms Pilkington was picked by the couple themselves to take pictures for their own personal album, with one of her stunning black and white images of the day being shared for the first time to celebrate their anniversary last month.

Princess Kate chose Millie Pilkington for her wedding day

Based in Dorset, Ms Pilkington began working on her photography full-time after she got married in 2000, with her speciality being wedding and children’s portraits.

She came to the attention of the Middleton family when Kate’s mum Carole hired her to take pictures for her business Party Pieces, which she has since sold.

This was likely when she was first introduced to Kate, who then asked her to take pictures of her wedding. Ms Pilkington described the day to Sheerluxe.com, saying: “If I had to describe it in three words, that day was surreal, magical and terrifying! And the most incredible honour – I still struggle to believe I was there.”

Kate and William wedding day black and white

The black and white wedding picture of Kate and William (Image: Millie Pilkington)

Her website states: “Whether photographing in her state-of-the-art studio in Dorset, or on location, Millie is known for doing whatever it takes to get the shot, from balancing precariously at the top of a ladder to wading through a pond.

“Her ability to capture the spirit of a moment, a child, a family, a relationship or a character gives her images an emotional truth and beauty that can be profoundly affecting.”

Last year two of her images of Prince Louis to mark his fifth birthday in April, with one of the pictures showing him beaming from ear to ear as he is pushed by Kate in a wheelbarrow.

Millie Pilkington is based in Dorset

Several of her pictures also followed later on that year, for Princess Charlotte’s birthday in May and Prince George’s in July, with all three children delightedly gathered round William for a charming portrait for Father’s Day.

Her talents have also caught the eye of Charles and Camilla, who hired her to take a picture of them walking arm in arm through the grounds of Buckingham Palace to celebrate the first anniversary of the Coronation.

Ms Pilkington captioned the shot on Instagram: “Feeling truly honoured to have been asked to take this portrait of Their Majesties the King and Queen earlier this month in Buckingham Palace Gardens. And delighted that His Majesty the King is recovering so well.”