VLADIMIR PUTIN'S media office has been forced to issue an explanation after hiring a former model as his personal photographer.

Yana Lapikova, 25, a former Miss Moscow contestant, was confirmed as one of Mr Putin's official personal photographers last week.

An anonymous photographer and blogger who disclosed the hiring of Ms Lapikova posted some of her racier modelling pictures alongside her own efforts, including ill-focused shots of fruit.

It is unclear how much experience she has. Her online portfolio includes a few dozen shots of cats, images from the interior of a prison and landscapes of Israel.