A BERMUDIAN designer, Bermudian models and the town of St. George's as well as Dockyard are enjoying exposure across the Caribbean and US east coast this month thanks to a photo shoot in a luxury lifestyle magazine, writes Clare O'Connor.

Bermuda is featured in the most recent issue of Island Life, a glossy quarterly title sold throughout the Caribbean and and in major bookstores in the US including Barnes & Noble and Borders.

The six-page spread, shot by Atlanta-based photojournalist Sean Drakes, showcases the talents of young Bermudian fashion designer Alicia Wanklyn and Bermudian sisters Liana and Nadia Hall, who are shown modelling Ms Wanklyn's designs around Dockyard.

Mr. Drakes, whose work has appeared in the Rough Guides travel series and high-fashion magazine Nylon, was on holiday here when he happened upon some portfolio shots of Liana Hall, a model and actress who splits her time between Bermuda and New York.

Having already taken some landscape shots of the town of St. George's, and keen to showcase the beauty of historic Dockyard, he asked whether Ms Hall knew of any local designers who'd be able to outfit her at a moment's notice. Luckily, Ms Hall had worked as a fit model for Alicia Wanklyn before, and knew of the Bermudian designer's talent.

Within a few hours, a photo shoot had been set up, with Nadia agreeing to model alongside her sister and Ms Wanklyn doubling as a stylist.

While Mr. Drakes had not been commissioned for his Bermuda shoot, Island Life snapped up his photos of St. George's, and of the Hall sisters wearing Alicia Wanklyn's designs in Dockyard.

"It was an instantaneous photo shoot, and I think it speaks to the natural beauty of Bermuda and to the talent of its fashion community that the photos were picked up by Island Life so quickly," Liana Hall said.

"There are so many great models in Bermuda. We have beautiful scenery and beautiful people; Bermudians don't get the credit they deserve."

Photojournalist Mr. Drakes agreed, saying: "It was my first visit to Bermuda. I came to celebrate my birthday, not shoot layouts – a testament to how irresistible I found Bermuda's allure.

"Each time I recount memories from my first visit I start by stating, 'I have never been to an island destination that is as picturesque and flawless as the images seen in ads and publications.' Each parish I visited has a zen-like tranquillity, and the people couldn't be more pleasant, really."

Liana, a graduate of the prestigious Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York and current student of the T. Schreiber Studio, hopes this exposure in Island Life will encourage more designers to consider Bermuda as a venue for fashion photo shoots.

Recently, R&B star Beyoncé shot an ad campaign for her clothing line House of Dereon on the island, earning column inches for Bermuda in the international media.

"Bermuda is underrepresented in terms of fashion," Ms Hall said. "It is such a fantastic location for a photo shoot."

Ms Wanklyn, meanwhile, is busy working on her next collection, following the debut of her last line at Kaleidoscope Arts Foundation in November. She is currently sailing around the Caribbean, and hopes to put the collection together in Montreal before returning home to Bermuda.

"Right now I'm in the Caribbean, drawing, picking out colours and going through the process," she said.

"I'll put it all together in Montreal and then come back to Bermuda. I like the idea of having a Bermudian design concept. I hope to show my new work later this year, probably in the summer."