Kate Middleton victim of massive Photoshop fail

Kate Middleton on the cover of Australia's Woman's Day magazine. Photo / Woman's Day, Getty Images

Within hours of Australian publication Woman's Day releasing their cover of a heavily photoshopped Duchess Of Cambridge, outrage from around the world poured in over Kate Middleton's obviously altered features.

By Tuesday morning the weekly publication appeared to be in damage control, swiftly taking to their Facebook page to upload a more natural-looking version of the controversial cover to their some 505,484 followers.

In the latest version shared online by the magazine, the pregnant 33-year-old's eyes are returned to their natural hazel-brown state - glowing far less than the first interpretation.

Kate's former bright red lips now feature a more natural blush tone and her incredibly rosy cheeks have been restored to a more subdued complexion.

Interestingly the magazine left the exaggerated fake sparkle to Kate's diamond earrings.

Woman's Day are yet to officially address the scandal, however international media outlets and social media commentators have been quick to condemn the image of The Duchess.

Indeed Kate looked vastly different on the day the photo was taken when she stepped out at the new Kensington Leisure Centre in London last week.

During her public appearance The Duchess of Cambridge, who shares one-year-old son Prince George with husband Prince William, was her usual glowing self.

But the pregnant royal looked vastly different when the image from the bash was published on the cover of the Australian magazine.

Woman's Day featured a photo of Kate dressed in a baby-blue coat, smiling warmly as she clutched a large bunch of flowers.

Photo / Woman's Day

However, the expectant mother-of-one had changed drastically when printed on the magazine cover, sporting lightened eyes and a layer of pink colouring on her lips.

Woman's Day is Australia's top women's weekly magazine, with a circulation of 320,398 and a readership of around two million.

It is owned by Bauer Media Group which also publishes The Australian Women's Weekly, Cosmopolitan, OK! and Good Health.

It is not the first time the Duchess of Cambridge has been photoshopped for a magazine cover.

In September 2012, US publication Star magazine was savaged for doctoring a picture of Kate to give her a prominent baby bump, claiming that she was pregnant with twins.

The August 2012 issue of Marie Claire South Africa also featured an altered image of The Duchess' head superimposed on a model's body but the glossy owned up from the outset, explaining it was a fantasized interpretation.

"The cover is - much like her life - more fantasy than reality. The cover is actually a hyper-real illustration of Kate, meant to be a fan art tribute to fashion's new royal icon," Marie Claire South Africa explained at the time.

The Duchess is now just three months from giving birth to her second child and glowed with health as she attended a number of engagements last week.

As she greeted volunteers and spoke to fans gathered to catch a glimpse of the royal, Kate revealed that she and William do not yet know the sex of their unborn baby.

The baby boy or girl, due in late April, will be the couple's second child and the first sibling for son Prince George.

- Daily Mail