The royal couple have posed for a number of official photographs with their son
Lawyers for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have asked a photographer to "cease harassing" Prince George and his nanny.
A Kensington Palace statement said they were prompted to take action after the man was spotted near the 14-month-old in a central London park.
It said: "No parent would tolerate the suspicion of someone pursuing and harassing their child and carer."
The couple are not taking legal action at this stage.
BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said palace officials believe the photographer's actions amounted to "stalking" and that lawyers were seeking an assurance he would desist.
"If they do not receive these assurances that this behaviour will stop, they will then consider options of legal action," he said.
Our correspondent added that the man had been warned off last week by royal protection officers and that he had also been spoken to "over a number of years" about his behaviour.
There is a low-level battle between the royals and the media who are bound together in a complex symbiotic relationship.
The one side needs coverage of what they do and wants to exercise control; the other seeks greater access and better pictures.
In this latest incident, the focus is less on the individual's job as a photographer and more on what the royals see as his actions - pursuit, surveillance and harassment.
Not for the first time, Prince William is attempting to draw a line and establish what is, in his view, beyond the pale.
There is a global market for unauthorised photographs of Prince George.
William can't close down such a market, but he can go after one of the suppliers of these images.
He is taking such action and he will go to court, if necessary, so that the toddler future king can play untroubled in a public park.
The palace statement added: "There is reason to suspect that the individual may have been placing Prince George under surveillance and monitoring his daily routines for a period of time.
"The duke and duchess understand the particular public role that Prince George will one day inherit but while he is young, he must be permitted to lead as ordinary a life as possible."
Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo was named as the prince's nanny in March when the palace appealed for her privacy to be respected.
The prince was photographed on a royal visit to New Zealand in April
Since his birth in July 2013, the royal couple have posed for a number of official photographs with Prince George.
He has also been pictured accompanying his parents on state visits and with the palace's consent at other events.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) editors' code of practice states that young children "must not be interviewed or photographed on issues involving their own or another child's welfare unless a custodial parent or similarly responsible adult consents".
IPSO replaced the defunct Press Complaints Commission last month.
Before the royal couple married, the Middleton family raised privacy concerns about alleged harassment by press agency photographers.
And in 2012, lawyers for the pair also took action against French gossip magazine Closer for publishing topless photos of the duchess.
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