It is a testament to the legacy of the Tall Ships 2000 Race that, a year after that epic event, the memories of it are still as vivid as they were the evening I stepped onto Bermuda's shores after covering more than 3,000 miles of ocean between here and Cadiz.

Such being the case, the task of documenting such a race within the covers of one photo journal seems daunting enough, without having one man take this mammoth responsibility onto his shoulders alone. Yet, with his book "Setting Sail for the New Millennium", Bermudian photographer Ian Macdonald-Smith has made a valiant attempt to do this and, for the most part, his efforts have met with success.

Macdonald-Smith's pictures are breathtakingly beautiful. In 233 pages, the tall ships are portrayed in all of their complex, old-world splendour, from every angle and height and with relishing respect for the shine of brass fittings, the grainy textures of decks, sails and riggings and for the panoramic settings in which they found themselves throughout the four month voyage, at no time ignoring the all important contrasts of shadows and light.

The pictures are effectively laid out too, with large ones often placed next to groups of smaller ones, allowing a variety of scales and perspectives to hit the eye all at once. Macdonald-Smith's juxtaposition of moments of strenuous sailing and hard work against pictures of the graceful ships at harbour in restful repose also helps the reader to gauge both the feelings of excitement and tranquillity that permeated the Tall Ships extravaganza from start to finish.

The first part of the book looks more at life on board the larger, Class A ships during their stays in Southampton, Genoa, Cadiz, Bermuda and Boston. While these pictures are impressive to say the least, there is little material covering the actual journeys between these ports.

Of course, it should be remembered that, with only one photographer at work, there was only so much that could be covered. However, one is led to ask whether an even better job might have been done if Macdonald-Smith had worked in collaboration with other photographers.

In any case, the second part of the book is devoted to life on board two particularly beautiful ships, Bluenose II and Eye of the Wind, during the races between Boston, Halifax and Amsterdam, and, in my opinion, these pictures make up the best part of the book. This is because they give the viewer a proper insight into the range of experiences and feelings to be had during the voyages and also afford him or her real sense of the interplay between the beauty and power of the sea.

It is in the final 127 pages that the true essence of the tall ships experience is genuinely captured.

Unfortunately, one must lament that the rest of the voyage could not have been covered with the same intimacy, if only for the sake of consistency.

While the pictures of different fittings and details on board the vessels are nice to look at, it seems that there are too many of them in the first part of the book and there is not quite enough focus on the human element and on the intricacies of the strictly regimented life aboard ship that make such a race so memorable. In addition, it would have been nice to see al little more coverage of the smaller, Class B and C boats that played an essential part in contributing to the overall experience of the Tall Ships Race.

Such quibbles aside, however, "Setting Sail for the New Millennium" is an impressive and worthy chronicle of the Tall Ships 2000 Race. Those who were not able to see it will gain a vivid idea of what they missed.

Those who took part and watched will find in it a breathtaking and evocative record of moments that deserve to be cherished.

Benedict Greening was a participant in the Tall Ships 2000 Race leg from Cadiz to Bermuda.