Why Annie Leibovitz Didn't Shoot Kimye's Wedding

Sunday's episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians will feature that infamous Kim Kardashian and Kanye West wedding. However, as you watch the special, you'll notice that one photographer is noticeably absent from the Kimye nuptials: Annie Leibovitz, arguably the most famous celebrity photographer of all time. As you might remember, Leibovitz was apparently supposed to shoot the wedding but backed out at the last minute. Multiple conflicting press statements were released.

West claimed the fact that Leibovitz didn't shoot their wedding was a source of strife during their honeymoon. The photo of the couple kissing in front of a rose wall that Kardashian released a few days after their wedding instantly became the most liked Instagram photo of all time. But West wasn't satisfied."Let me tell you something about that kiss photo that my girl put up," said West at the Cannes Lions festival. "This was pissing my girl off during the honeymoon, she was exhausted because we worked on the photo so much because Annie Leibovitz pulled out right before the wedding."

Which is to say, Kimye spent their Irish honeymoon photoshopping their wedding photos to look as if Leibovitz had taken them, even though she hadn't.

But! West and Leibovitz later released a joint statement saying that it was all a misunderstanding. Apparently, Leibovitz and West's representatives had been negotiating a deal for the wedding photography that was not finalized in time. Leibovitz did not exactly leave them in the lurch, as West's comments initially implied. Instead, it seems more likely that West had his hopes set on scoring Leibovitz as a photographer and was upset when it didn't work out. "Oh, I'm sorry for dreaming out loud. Again," he said. West likes to surround himself by creative geniuses and probably fancies himself a muse to a woman like Leibovitz, who has made a study out of fame. When she didn't show, his ego must have been very bruised.

Leibovitz photographed West and Kardashian for Vogue in March, and has never shied away from celebrity before. The likely reason she was uninterested in the wedding seems to be what her representative said, that she does not usually photograph weddings. Like many events in the Kardashian world, the LeibovitzGate 2014 seems to have been a lot of overblown drama.

Image: Kim Kardashian/Instagram