The Prince and Princess of Wales break tradition for new portraits of Prince Louis

Kate Middleton has marked the occasion of her youngest son’s fifth birthday by releasing new portraits of the little prince taken by photographer Millie Pilkington.

The Prince and Princess of Wales are celebrating their son Prince Louis’ fifth birthday, which took place this past Sunday.

The new portraits of five-year-old Prince Louis

The Waleses posted the photos to their official Instagram account.

The first picture shows a laughing Prince Louis inside a wheelbarrow on a pile of grass pushed by Middleton, while the second snap is a close-up portrait of the prince smiling and looking slightly away from the camera.

“Someone’s turning 5 tomorrow,” the Prince and Princess of Wales wrote in the caption. “A very happy birthday to Prince Louis.”

Photographer Kate

Princess Kate is normally the one behind the camera, as Middleton is known for her flair for photography.

The princess has described herself as an “enthusiastic amateur photographer” and has previously been the photographer to capture her children’s birthday shots.

The 41-year-old princess released a never-before-seen photo of her children with the late queen and their cousins on Friday, taken at Balmoral Castle in the summer of 2022 before the queen’s passing in September 2022.

Friday would have been Queen Elizabeth II’s 97th birthday.

King Charles’ royal coronation

Louis will be the youngest member of the royal family to be part of his grandfather, King Charles’, royal coronation coming up on May 6.

While his eldest brother, nine-year-old Prince George, is old enough to be an usher to the king, Prince Louis and his older sister, Princess Charlotte, who is seven years old, will be joining their older brother and their parents in the coronation procession from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace following the coronation.