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This is a positive feature in a periodical that the president has frequently admired – but for one catch. The magazine's cover photo, he stated, "may be the Worst of All Time".

Time's tribute to Donald Trump's part in brokering a Gaza ceasefire, headlining its early November edition, was presented alongside a photograph of the president taken from below while the sun shining from the back.

The effect, Trump claims, is "super bad".

"Time Magazine wrote a relatively good story about me, but the photo may be the lowest quality in history", Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“My hair was obscured, and then there was a shape over my head that seemed like a suspended diadem, but quite miniature. Truly strange! I have never liked being captured from low angles, but this is a super bad image, and it merits criticism. What are they doing, and why?”

The president has expressed obvious his ambition to appear on Time’s cover and did so multiple times in the past year. The preoccupation has reached the president's resorts – years ago, the editors demanded to remove fabricated front pages shown in some of his properties.

This issue's photograph was captured by Graeme Sloane for a news agency at the presidential residence on October 5.

The shot's viewpoint did no favours for his chin and neck area – a chance that California governor Newsom seized, with his communications team sharing an altered image with the offending area pixelated.

{The hostages from Israel detained in Gaza have been freed under the initial stage of Trump's ceasefire agreement, in exchange for a release of Palestinian detainees. The arrangement may become a major success of his next term, and it could mark a pivotal moment for the Middle East.

Simultaneously, a defense of Trump's image has come from unusual quarters: the director of information at Moscow's diplomatic office intervened to denounce the "revealing" image choice.

"It’s astonishing: a photograph reveals far more about those who selected it than about the person in it. Only sick people, people filled with spite and resentment –perhaps even perverts – could have picked this picture", she posted on Telegram.

In light of the positive pictures of Biden that the same publication used on the cover, notwithstanding his health issues, the story is simply self-incriminating for Time", she added.

The response to the president's inquiries – why did they choose this, and why? – could be related to artistically representing a feeling of authority says Carly Earl, a media professional.

The photograph technically is well-executed," she says. "They chose this shot because they wanted trump to look commanding. Staring up at someone gives a sense of their majesty and the president's visage actually looks reflective and almost slightly angelic. It’s not often you see pictures of him in such a serene moment – the picture feels tender."

His hair seems to vanish because the light from behind has bleached that section of the image, producing a glowing aura, she adds. And, while the feature's heading pairs nicely with Trump’s expression in the image, "one cannot constantly gratify the person photographed."

Nobody enjoys being captured from low angles, and even if all of the artistic aspects of the image are very strong, the visual appeal are not complimentary."

The Guardian approached Time magazine for feedback.