REAL.

Daniele Venturelli, the photographer who took the now infamous pictures of Lindsay Lohan stepping off a boat in Venice, confirms that the above picture is real, minus the cartoon cat.  The original set are the pictures he took, the second set has been doctored.  The EXIF data (screencap here) stored in the original picture confirms this. It lists Venturelli as the photographer and the caption begins “Looks like Lindsay Lohan forgot to put on her knickers before attending Venice Film Festival…” .  And the original is the only version avaible on photo image websites, such as Matrix and Wire Image (screencap here) . 

So, where did the second image come from, the image that shows her wearing underwear. Most assume it was a plant by her handlers or fans to discredit the original pictures and protect her from embarrassment.  Others believe it was those fatcats in DC, pawns of powerful special interest groups like No Moose Knuckles Today or Firecrotches for Americans.