Bermudian photographer Ian Macdonald-Smith has made the cover of international magazine Studio Photography and Design.

A four page spread entitled "In A Perfect Light" in the May edition of the magazine is about Mr. Macdonald-Smith, and one of his photographs at Pompano Beach is on the front cover.

The magazine, which sells to 50,000 professional photographers, describes Mr. Macdonald-Smith as a "visual visionary (who) tells a story that transports us and transforms our humble planet into a better place".

It concentrates on his extensive travels and his obsession with catching his subjects in the perfect light.

It is the second time Mr. Macdonald-Smith has made the front cover of an international photographic magazine, and he told The Royal Gazette it should help him build his reputation overseas.

Last month he spent a week photographing the Amish community in Pennsylvania and went to Block Island - which is near Long Island and known as the Bermuda of the north - for a book coming out later this year called `A Day In The Life Of America - America 24/7'.

The book, described as the largest collaborative photo project in history, involved 4,000 professional photographers taking pictures in every state in the US.

The magazine spread features nine of Mr. Macdonald-Smith's pictures from Bermuda and Norway. The photographer, who has published five books mainly about Bermuda, said yesterday: "I've known the editor for about three or four years and they wanted to do a piece about travel combined with all the things I did.

"No doubt, it's very good for me. I've spent about five years trying to break into the international market and this kind of exposure gives you credibility among your peers. There are so many very, very good photographers in the world and when you get an article like this done, it gives you credibility."

Mr. Macdonald-Smith is sponsored by Fuji, who provide him with film, and by Olympus, who use him and 30 other photographers as consultants on a new digital camera which the company is bringing out. A month-long trip he planned from Beijing to Hong Kong via Tibet later this year has been cancelled because of the cost and the SARS outbreak.