Diana, Princess of Wales, visits the Pyramids in Giza during an official tour of Egypt. Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
Princess Diana was no stranger to flashbulbs, but one photo backdrop reportedly made her uncomfortable.
Samir Hussein, a royal photographer who — alongside his father Anwar and brother Zak — worked with Diana and her family for four decades, shared exclusively with Us Weekly that the late princess felt “very uneasy” taking a picture by the Egyptian pyramids.
“My father got into a conversation with her and she said she was very nervous when it came to appearing in front of big iconic landmarks,” Samir recounted in a Tuesday, June 11, interview. “She was visiting Egypt the next day and she was going to be visiting the pyramids.”
In response, Samir recalled his father telling Diana, “Well, you’re so natural, why don’t you just pretend you’re a model?” The princess liked his idea and, the next day, Anwar snapped a photo of her doing just that. The result was the now iconic picture, published in 1992, which shows the late monarch on her tiptoes, wearing a long white dress and matching white kitten heels.
Princess Diana left a grand legacy in her wake following her death in 1997. Diana married into England’s royal family in July 1981, when she and King Charles III (then Prince Charles) exchanged vows. The couple soon welcomed heirs to the throne, with Diana giving birth to Prince William in 1982 and to Prince Harry […]
Samir noted that his father and Diana had a “good relationship” with one another, adding that there was a lot of “humor and trust and…connection.”
Evidence of that strong bond can be seen on display at the Princess Diana: Accredited Access Exhibition, a new exhibit that features some of her most iconic photos paired with commentary from the royal photographers. The London showcase includes 75 life-size photos accompanied by untold stories of their creation.
Princess Diana In The Tomb Of King Seti I, May 1992. Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
The Husseins dug through Anwar’s archives together to curate the collection. Samir tells Us he discovered old photos he didn’t know existed, including snapshots from a trip Diana took to Japan. His favorite picture shows the princess holding a sick child in her arms, a favorite of Diana’s as well.
“She’s cradling a young boy who is suffering from cancer and who’s blind,” he said. “But the boy you can see is just absolutely taken by her. He’s fascinated, even though he is blind, he’s looking straight at her and you can really see her sort of caring side in the picture really comes across.”
The photographer added that the princess felt equally fond of that snapshot. “She actually said that this was her favorite picture that my father had taken just because of the connection to the child,” he recalled. “I think that showed a lot about how much she cared.”