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A Royal Portrait: Queen Elizabeth II by Annie Leibovitz


With April 29 fast approaching, it seems that every news segment on television nowadays is accompanied with updates on the upcoming Royal wedding of Prince William of Wales and soon-to-be Queen-in-waiting Kate Middleton. Before everyone else is captivated by this Royal wedding fever, a few words and pictures should be devoted to the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, who is presented here in all her grandeur and elegance as photographed by Annie Leibovitz.

Ms. Leibovitz was the first American commissioned to take the British Monarch's portrait, and these four outstanding images are the result of that assignment three years ago.

 
This particular photo shoot wasn't without controversy, although the problem had to do with a trailer to a TV series documenting a year in the life of the Queen. Apparently, some executives decided it would be better to edit the trailer so that it appeared that the Queen was angrily storming out of this photo session. 

In reality, she was walking into the shoot. It was a rather misleading interpretation, and as a result, some people high up the ladder were forced to resign their posts.


The above photograph shows the Queen on the grounds of Buckingham Palace, giving her a sort of pensive and brooding mood. In reality, Her Majesty was photographed indoors and the outdoor scene was added in later digitally. Given the time frame and other constraints that Ms. Leibovitz had to work with, this photo and the other pictures were done very well. 

You can find out more about this particular photo shoot in her most recent book, Annie Leibovitz at work. Vanity Fair has an excerpt that you can read over here. You can also view this video taken from the same documentary mentioned above.


Queen Elizabeth II has reigned for 59 years, and all four photos show her resilience, vitality and majesty in the best light. It is therefore fitting that this post should come just before her Diamond Jubilee celebration next year.

Check out this previous post on Annie Leibovitz's photography. For those of you who stumbled upon this post looking for photos of the upcoming Royal wedding, you can indulge yourself over here or here. More of Ms. Leibovitz's work can be found in her book A Photographer's Life: 1990-2005. Her workflow describing her photo shoot with Queen Elizabeth as well as other notable subjects over the years can be read found in Annie Leibovitz at Work.



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Comments

  1. The Game Store GuyApril 25, 2011 at 2:19 PM

    That third one doesn't even look real.

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  2. R.CApril 25, 2011 at 2:43 PM

    Interesting pictures of the Queen. Definitely got me thinking since a couple of weeks ago the "queen" appeared in WWE's Raw when they were in the UK and she "knighted" Michael Cole...the audience was booing like crazy.

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  3. The Awesome AlienApril 25, 2011 at 2:56 PM

    she is really scary looking

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  4. Brandon SampleApril 25, 2011 at 3:19 PM

    59 years, wow

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  5. LhosreiffApril 25, 2011 at 5:14 PM

    Shes pretty old. And boring.

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  6. Astronomy PirateApril 25, 2011 at 5:25 PM

    Photoshopped, I can tell by the pixels. Also, April 29th is a horrible date, I hope the Space Shuttle Endeavour's final launch upshows them.

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  7. freightblogApril 25, 2011 at 5:38 PM

    awesome photos!

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  8. AnonymousApril 25, 2011 at 5:55 PM

    @t =dgrphx=;
    hehe, yup. Looks like an old evil queen who likes eating virgins.

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  9. JayApril 25, 2011 at 6:30 PM

    wow, such a lot of negative feedback.

    i actually quite like them. :D

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  10. DaveApril 25, 2011 at 6:43 PM

    These pics of the Queen are really nice. I think the one at the top is excellent.

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  11. MoApril 25, 2011 at 7:15 PM

    the third really dont look real...

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  12. FangApril 25, 2011 at 7:24 PM

    You can see the third pic is indeed editted, very obvious border around the woman.

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  13. Jack of DiamondsApril 25, 2011 at 7:38 PM

    I hate the fact that the tax payer is paying for this stupid wedding!

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  14. MikeApril 25, 2011 at 8:14 PM

    she reminds me of something evil...

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  15. UnknownApril 25, 2011 at 8:28 PM

    i like them...
    all are looking awesome except 3rd one....

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  16. UnknownApril 25, 2011 at 9:04 PM

    yeah, I think some of these have been worked with to look like paintings . .

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  17. TrolskeApril 25, 2011 at 9:17 PM

    I have nothing against the royals, I just don't give a shit. And the third picture is really obvious, but the rest is pretty good.

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  18. duffboiApril 25, 2011 at 9:58 PM

    Wow those pictures are amazing. The Queen and the backgrounds are outstanding!

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  19. D4April 25, 2011 at 10:23 PM

    Yeah, I was about to mention the grounds pic too but I saw all the comments. Looked like a really good painting. The rest were quality though.

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  20. T. BanacekApril 25, 2011 at 10:44 PM

    She looks like George Washington.

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  21. randomerApril 25, 2011 at 10:46 PM

    Beautiful pictures, even if the queen were removed from them they would still have such a regal feel.

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  22. AnonymousApril 25, 2011 at 11:02 PM

    What I like about these pictures they look like old paintings :D

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  23. RedHeadRobApril 25, 2011 at 11:08 PM

    Those are all pretty neat.

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  24. AnonymousApril 25, 2011 at 11:35 PM

    I like the 4th. However, I do not like the paperclip in the top corner :P

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  25. KyleApril 26, 2011 at 12:49 AM

    I don't care what people say! She is a FOX

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  26. edApril 26, 2011 at 1:07 AM

    elegant pics, kinda creepy though

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  27. HiFiApril 26, 2011 at 1:22 AM

    I wonder why these photos look like they were meant to make the queen look scary.

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  28. UnknownApril 26, 2011 at 1:41 AM

    awesome shots

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  29. AmbiApril 26, 2011 at 2:14 AM

    All of them don't really look like photographs

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  30. BTN Hip HopApril 26, 2011 at 2:36 AM

    meh i dont really care about the wedding and im english, who needs a monarchy these days?

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  31. RazorApril 26, 2011 at 3:07 AM

    The first is such a magnificent photo! Do you have it in ultra-HQ?

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  32. OatmealStoutApril 26, 2011 at 4:18 AM

    I still don't know who this Kate Middleton is, or why we care about said wedding in the US. The pics are nice, but they look over-stylized and fake =/ Also, April 29 is my bday :P

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  33. AlexandraApril 26, 2011 at 5:17 AM

    Looks great but i dont like her, or the "royal" family. The news is making their wedding a big deal when really its JUST a wedding, i dont care whether they are getting married or not, ppffft lol.

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  34. DocStoutApril 26, 2011 at 5:38 AM

    Yeah, 1,2 and 4 are brilliant. Not a fan of the manipulated #3.

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  35. Joel C AnatoliApril 26, 2011 at 5:39 AM

    hahaha, I agree with Jack.

    Its retarded.

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  36. T. Roger ThomasApril 26, 2011 at 6:13 AM

    I don't care about the Royals or the upcoming wedding at all. Kick them out of their fancy homes and redistribute their wealth.

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  37. Electric AddictApril 26, 2011 at 6:29 AM

    very elegant

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  38. 123April 26, 2011 at 6:50 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  39. StyronApril 26, 2011 at 7:08 AM

    this is unethical...oh it's the queen, who cares!

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  40. misticalniaApril 26, 2011 at 7:22 AM

    Don't you just love fairy tales? I know I do.

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  41. misticalniaApril 26, 2011 at 7:25 AM

    Buckingham Palace - my home!

    No, really. My neighborhood is called "London Woods" and the house that I live is apparently called the Buckingham model according to real estate. Weird, isn't it?

    Anyway, random comment right there, but then again, I always make random comments. Oh, and the pictures of the Queen are truly magnifique.

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  42. Schla.mp3April 26, 2011 at 7:32 AM

    i absolutely agree with jack!

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  43. ShutterbugApril 26, 2011 at 7:34 AM

    Those are some pretty photos!

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  44. Blog HuntApril 26, 2011 at 8:58 AM

    wow that is stunning!

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  45. The Old MasterApril 26, 2011 at 9:08 AM

    beautiful. masterpiece. royal talent!

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  46. pixelApril 26, 2011 at 10:18 AM

    these all have a nice painterly quality

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  47. LegnoxApril 26, 2011 at 10:49 AM

    ahhhh this royal wedding stuff is starting to annoy me quite honestly :/

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  48. AnonfourtwentyApril 26, 2011 at 10:59 AM

    The second one from the bottom scares me.

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  49. Fred RickersonApril 26, 2011 at 1:01 PM

    Fantastic shots, long live the queen!

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  50. Mike LitorisApril 26, 2011 at 5:32 PM

    nice!

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  51. MoobeatApril 26, 2011 at 5:51 PM

    Mixed feelings on this one it seems

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  52. JaccstevApril 26, 2011 at 7:59 PM

    Those looks completely majestic :)

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  53. Patti D.April 26, 2011 at 8:06 PM

    they look so awesome!!! it's amazing.

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  54. KatoFinanceApril 26, 2011 at 9:41 PM

    I want to visit England someday!


    Please follow my blog!

    katofinance.blogspot.com

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  55. AnonymousApril 26, 2011 at 10:00 PM

    beautiful. almost look like paintings.

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  56. UnknownApril 26, 2011 at 11:39 PM

    Chilling stuff.

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  57. MRanthropeApril 27, 2011 at 3:50 AM

    Charles will be king for about 2 weeks at this rate! Glad she's still going strong.

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  58. SlamcakesApril 27, 2011 at 4:13 AM

    Let's hope she doesn't "reign" on their parade :P

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  59. ErikDesignworkApril 27, 2011 at 4:46 AM

    These are just majestetic!

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  60. Ante BabajaApril 27, 2011 at 6:27 AM

    nice pictures, but i dont like her

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  61. Biff TannerApril 27, 2011 at 6:49 AM

    Those are some great pics

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  62. Hardy PaceApril 27, 2011 at 7:29 AM

    Great photos, never supported the archaic monarchy though

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  63. -inastateofblueApril 27, 2011 at 8:16 AM

    Looks pretty scary if you ask me

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  64. JbloggerApril 27, 2011 at 8:23 AM

    these are great!

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  65. nooneApril 27, 2011 at 8:33 AM

    love these photos, tbh im quite a fan of queen elizabeth

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  66. SkimboshApril 27, 2011 at 9:43 AM

    None of them look real to me. Very nice, but not real. FREAKY.

    God save the queen.

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  67. Schla.mp3April 27, 2011 at 12:19 PM

    mhh it's hard to believe that this are photos

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  68. EdApril 27, 2011 at 12:33 PM

    I remember seeing these when they were first published. She looks so... Royal.

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  69. thesmashhitfantasticApril 28, 2011 at 7:45 AM

    These are obviously beautiful photos. They're like paintings! So modern. So strong. It's amazing what technology can do in this day and age. I'm just starting out with my blog, but taking pictures has begun to remind me that I need to brush up on my photo skills! It's been a looong time since photo class. Nice blog!

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  70. ✗✗April 28, 2011 at 2:18 PM

    These photographs are magnificent!! Annie Leibovitz is an amazing photographer, one of my fav's!! I can't wait for the royal wedding this week!!

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  71. Hive Mind.April 29, 2011 at 1:26 AM

    Very powerful photo!

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  72. DaleApril 29, 2011 at 10:24 AM

    Wow, Annie L is really one of the best photographers. I think they always look like they are straight out of a fairytale.

    xoDale
    Thanks for the comment too. I have to admit I can't wait to watch the wedding footage tomorrow and see what her dress will look like

    ReplyDelete
  73. UnknownMay 2, 2011 at 2:58 AM

    I love the pictures. Love the palace interior and she looks exactly like you described in your post very resilient and majestic!

    xx
    Heel in Mint

    ReplyDelete
  74. AnonymousJune 10, 2011 at 1:08 PM

    I laughed till I peed...with the comment made that she looks like George Washington. Totally!! HAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHHAAAA

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  75. AnonymousNovember 4, 2012 at 11:44 AM

    What lovely photos! The first one especially shows the queen at her best, timeless, beautiful and wise.

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  76. portrait photography SeattleOctober 28, 2013 at 6:09 PM

    Hi
    I like the way you start and then conclude your thoughts. Thanks for this nice information regarding regarding I really appreciate your work, keep it up.

    ReplyDelete

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