Long to reign the Queen

As one of the most photographed women in the world, the Queen's reign has been documented through a camera lens year after year.

And on September 9, Elizabeth II will become the longest-reigning British monarch, surpassing the record set by her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria who, Buckingham Palace has calculated, reigned for 23,226 days, 16 hours and 23 minutes. 

Princess Elizabeth became Queen at just 25 on the death of her father King George VI on February 6, 1952.

She has served, with Philip at her side, through the 20th century, the Millennium and into the 21st century, witnessing new technological advances and a succession of British governments of different political persuasions.