'Just take the f***ing picture': Prince Philip's most notorious photo call

Prince Philip sadly passed away yesterday morning at Windsor Castle aged 99. Husband to Queen Elizabeth II for over 70 years, the Duke of Edinburgh had an interesting relationship with photographers. With a reputation for speaking his mind and saying things as he saw them, one of the clips we are likely to see much of in the coming days is how he reprimanded one poor photographer in 2015.

If you are photographed as often as the British royal family is, it can understandably be irritating when a group portrait takes longer than you would wish. And as ever on this occasion, to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain - the prince just gave the photographer a piece of his mind. Caught on TV cameras he impatiently shouts out 'Just take the f***ing picture' - to the nervous amusement of his grandson Prince William, as you can see in the video clip above.

The infamous group portrait that made Price Philip swear at the photographer, taken on 10 July 2015 at a lunch to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle Of Britain, at the RAF Club in London. (Image credit: Getty Images)

But the swearing, on this occasion, seemed to do the trick - with the group of fellow royals and RAF dignitaries having their picture recorded for posterity a moment later.

The picture was taken by regular royal photographer Steve Parsons for the Press Association. It was shot using a Canon EOS-1D X and a 16-35mm f/4L lens.

Read more
Best professional cameras
Best cameras for portraits

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Chris George

Chris George has worked on Digital Camera World since its launch in 2017. He has been writing about photography, mobile phones, video making and technology for over 30 years – and has edited numerous magazines including PhotoPlus, N-Photo, Digital Camera, Video Camera, and Professional Photography. 


His first serious camera was the iconic Olympus OM10, with which he won the title of Young Photographer of the Year - long before the advent of autofocus and memory cards. Today he uses a Nikon D800, a Fujifilm X-T1, a Sony A7, and his iPhone 11 Pro.


He has written about technology for countless publications and websites including The Sunday Times Magazine, The Daily Telegraph, Dorling Kindersley, What Cellphone, T3 and Techradar.