My initial thought is wondering why they looking off center? The pose to me is awkward.

William could have been portrayed better. He looks almost like he is wincing.

I also think a more classic dress for Kate would be a better choice.

Something's off with Kate's face. It's a beautiful painting of two people, but I don't think it captures them the way they appear. I also don't like paintings/photos where the subjects are looking away.

It really doesn't look like her. She looks like any actress. I also don't like the fact that they're not looking forward.

The dress is OK, I guess. The usually wears much nicer dresses. The bra is very wrong. I also don't like the sideways glance.

Not bad, but underwhelming. His face looks odd. And despite the arms around each other (?) I don't see much affection between the two. A very slight tilt of her head, toward him, would have made a difference.

I assume there will be more portraits in the future.

"She looks like any actress."

Yes, exactly -- I think that's an accurate depiction of the way she looks in the media. To me, she always looks like a generic actress.

I like the atypical but still attractive portrait.

I am not a fan. I am rather surprised this one was chosen. This does not do her justice.

I like it, in general, except for the way William is portrayed. I think he looks strangely cold and uptight. Kate would, in my view, have looked much better in shades of blue.

It's weird that they're looking off to the side like that.

Wow, that's bad. Neither of them look like them...instead they both look slightly off...almost misshapen and out of proportion. My cousin would've done a much better job...in fact he has with even portraits of dogs on someone's calf!

Her bosom looks a little too . . pronounced, I guess. Not in a good way.

I don’t like it.

"A very slight tilt of her head, toward him, would have made a difference."

Yes, exactly. I knew something was off to me, but it looks like she's pulling her head away from him. Like she's looking over her shoulder.

They look deformed. William's head and Kate's body.

Rusty

I can't make myself like it. And Kate is wearing my favorite color.

I'm another one who thinks this is a miss. And I try really hard not to be too critical. Being in the public eye and having your every move scrutinized, and every clothing choice, color choice, etc. must be exhausting. I suspect none of us always look our best either and again, I try to keep that in mind.

But for a portrait, you can't exactly say you were surprised and caught off guard. The whole thing feels weirdly awkward to me - the positioning, I agree her undergarments are not doing her any favors here (and I've never seen her look anything like that in any other photo!), and they both look a smidge distorted or something.

No bueno.

Hate the dress; think that (her) hair in her typical updo would have suited an "official" portrait better - plus I always think it is more flattering to her; and the poses are just plain odd - what are they looking at? I realize that a gaze into the distance, a 3/4 view, is common in portraits, but when you add in her turn of the head, and the position of his eyes, it just feels awkward.

I dislike the background color as well!

Kate looks younger in this photo. William looks uncomfortable. I don't think the art is bad... but I think I prefer a happier looking couple.

Her left hand appears to be on his butt. I assume that they must be happy with it otherwise it wouldn't have been approved for release.

It almost reminds me of a picture I have. Family friend was in the clothing business in NYC and had a painting of a model man and woman together that was used for some ad somewhere. He then had someone else paint my in-law's heads on the bodies. While the image looks like them, their heads are out of proportion with the bodies so it always looked off to me. We didn't hang it...neither did they.

This doesnt capture the warmth that usually exudes from either of them when they are out together in public. She has far better fashion choices than this shiny one, and both facial expressions and her hair are way off. I’m another who doesnt care for the far away look. a slight turn of the head is one thing, but this is weird.

Also hands are hard to do, so the fact that they only painted one makes it more eh. The more I look at it, the more it looks like the bodies were painted by one artist and the faces by another....they're not consistent.

Then again, I never liked the obama portrait either...I thought it looked ridiculous with all the leaves and that it too didn't capture their personality.

Good point about the hands. But I did like the Obama/leaves portrait, it was imaginative and it looked like him.

I wonder what our late and greatly missed Anglophilia would have said about this portrait.

A waste of taxpayer money. Them and the portrait.

It's missing what I like about a lot of their candid photos -- the way she is often seen looking at him adoringly. Also, I agree with Littlebug's assessment. I'm not even a guy, and my eyes went right there.

I keep returning to the portrait. As others have commented it just doesn't look right.

I finally figured out what bothers me. It honestly looks like a picture of a married couple who just had a disagreement and the photographer instructed them to stand closer and they just couldn't.

It's missing what I like about a lot of their candid photos -- the way she is often seen looking at him adoringly"

The fact that it's "missing" is one of the things I like about it. Much more realistic, in my opinion.

A bored and boring couple.

About the dress - this would be it.

I don't like the dress - it looks like it is for a much older woman; how old is she anyway - I do not follow them.

I do not like the length of the sleeves with the ruffle just covering the elbow. A fully 3/4 sleeve would have looked better. I don't like the ruffle at the bottom of the dress either - it makes the dress look extremely casual and unsophisticated, which would be okay but not for a formal portrait. There is also an odd wrinkle at her waist that interrupts the flow of the dress.

I don't like William's hand in his pocket, and he looks slightly bowlegged, but maybe he is.

They look like they are staring off into the very distant and uncertain future.

I did like the Obama portrait.

I really think she needs to rethink whoever styles her. She is very pretty and whoever dresses her INSISTS on putting her in these dowdy dresses that do not fit her or flatter her beauty. I feel so bad for her. Every look, every hair on her head, every eyelash, not to mention her marriage and motherhood, is criticized by the whole world. I imagine that takes a toll on ones mental well being. So I will not continue to add to it. I will say that she is lovely and I do not think THIS portrait does her justice, and leave it at that.

The dress in reality, while not great by my lights, is far better than the portrait.

And goodness, she is far far prettier than how she has been painted.

Love the Obama portrait.

As for whether or not they are a boring couple, it is hard to imagine two people with a front row seat to so much happening in the world, plus each with a first class education, and both coming from different backgrounds could be boring. They could be, there are boring, dull people from all social strata.

Diana definitely had a better stylist, and perhaps some people want to hold her as a standard.

I agree that Kate needs a different stylist - I have no idea whether she picks her own stylist or not, since I do not follow any of the royals, except the ex-royals.

I think Kate is a very pretty woman who looks great in everything she wears but that dress is UGLY!!. I would not be caught dead in it and green is my favorite color. She doesn't quite have the style of Diana but she has a lovely figure. William was a darling boy but not quite as handsome as he once was.

I too hate the dress. Something more classic in her signature blue would have been far better IMO. William looks like he’s waiting at a bus stop, and while staring straight ahead would have been way too formal, looking over the painter‘s left shoulder would have looked less awkward. Kate’s head is turned way too far around- it looks more like she’s trying to escape.

The most amazing thing to me this to think of all the channels this portrait had to go through in order to be approved.

From the clothing, to the pose to the background.

I think her height and overall size is too big. Not to mention that droopy old lady body. Hate the dress.

Kate is beautiful. Her dresses are often too conservative IMO. I can understand dressing modestly, but the dresses often age her. Part of me thinks she's trying to emulate the queen, but from what I can tell from old photos, the queen had some absolutely stunning dresses that covered up, but still were fun and flirty and gorgeous at the same time.

Adella, please share the dresses you are talking about. I have never seen the queen in anythung but her matching coat/ shift dress ensembles in those very bright colors. The bright colors I understand are so she can be easily seen by the crowd.

I disagree with you about Kate. Many her dress are lovely. However, she must adhere to the strict rules and guidelines.

Her:"Get this damn thing over" Him: if he says don't move, I'm going to leave.

In Diana's first few years in the public eye, she wore dresses that today we might consider a little too froofy (perhaps inspired by if not Laura Ashley) but then they were a fresh look and really suited her.

I did think that wearing the sapphire necklace as a headband was a big fail, though.

Kate seems to usually also wear clothes that flatter and suit her, but this dress with ruffles - yeah, dowdy.

The queen seems to have settled into dowdiness very early on - Has she even changed her hairstyle since 1952? It has never been very flattering to her.

I don't like that Kate's head is turned away, and William's is in the second one. I have a picture like that, and I hate it, it looks like I don't want to be with my husband.

The dress does kind of look like someone cut up their grandma's old drapes to make it.

^^^Like Scarlette O’Hara in Gone with the Wind!^^^^

That’s a classic, Toronto.