Prince Harry and Meghan Markle welcomed their son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor into the world on May 6 at 5.26am. Since then, the couple has only shared two images of their son: one each on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. However, on Saturday, royal fans were delighted when the Sussex couple chose to share two more images with the world: one with the couple’s immediate family and another with just the three of them. But who is the photographer who took these images?

The royal christening of baby Archie was an intimate, private affair with only around 25 people invited to witness the ceremony – all of whom were very close friends and family members.

All members of the media were banned from this event – which the parents decided to keep private and more personal to them.

No journalists or photographers were therefore invited to capture the procession of the family into the church as had been permitted with the christenings of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – except for one.

While members of the press were not allowed to report on the private ceremony from within the chapel, or to capture images of the royals entering and leaving the church, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did allow one photographer, Chris Allerton, to document the day.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex later chose to share two of his photographs with members of the public, sharing it on their social media accounts.

The first was an image taken of the proud parents holding their two-month-old son in the Windsor Castle rose garden, while the other was a family portrait taken in the green drawing room.

The statement released by Buckingham Palace alongside the couple read: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to share the happiness of this day, and would like to thank everyone around the world for their ongoing support.

“They feel so fortunate to have enjoyed this special moment with family and Archie’s godparents.”

Mr Allerton also shared his thoughts about photographing the day.

He said in a statement: “I am honoured to take the official photographs at the christening of Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, and to once again, be part of such a special and joyous occasion for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.”

But who exactly is Chris Allerton?

On his official website Mr Allerton wrote: “Chris developed his first roll of film at the age of 8 and has been hooked on photography since.”

He added he left the British Army in 2001 after which time he worked at the Lichfield Studios in Notting Hill to help master the skills needed of a professional photographer.

Now, Mr Allerton travels around the world on commissions, specialising in location Portrait, Fashion and Private Event photography.

Along with his private clients he works with major fashion houses and top international companies and his photographs have featured in numerous publications internationally including Harpers Bazaar, Tatler, The Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Times Style, Country Life, Hello!, Ralph Lauren Magazine and Le Figaro.

The christening of baby Archie was not in fact the first time Mr Allerton had been used as the on-hand photographer for a major milestone in the Sussex family.

He captured private images of their wedding, one of which was shared as the Sussexes’ Christmas card in 2018, and several others which were included in the video shared on the couple’s first anniversary.

Mr Allerton was also the photographer used during baby Archie’s first photo session in Windsor just two days after he was born.

He was also responsible for the iconic image that was shared of baby Archie meeting his meeting his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, for the first time.

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