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This is a glowing feature in a periodical that Donald Trump has long exalted – but for one catch. The cover picture, Trump declared, ""might be the most terrible in history".

Time's tribute to Donald Trump's part in mediating a truce for Gaza, leading its 10 November issue, was presented alongside a photograph of the president captured from underneath and with the sun positioned behind him.

The outcome, Trump claims, is ""extremely poor".

"Time wrote a fairly positive story about me, but the photo may be the most awful ever", Trump wrote on his preferred network.

“They removed my hair, and then had an object hovering on top of my head that appeared as a floating crown, but an remarkably little one. Truly strange! I never liked taking pictures from underneath angles, but this is a super bad picture, and deserves to be called out. Why did they do this, and why?”

Donald Trump has shown clear his wish to appear on the cover of Time and did so four times last year. This fixation has made it as far as his golf courses – in 2017, the editors demanded to remove mocked up covers on display at a few of his establishments.

The latest edition’s photo was taken by Graeme Sloane for a news agency at the White House on October 5.

The perspective did no favours for his chin and neck area – an opportunity that California governor Newsom took advantage of, with the governor's office tweeting a version with the problematic part obscured.

{The living Israeli hostages detained in Gaza have been released under the first phase of Trump's ceasefire agreement, in exchange for a freeing of Palestinian inmates. This agreement might turn into a major success of his next term, and it might signify a strategic turning point for that part of the world.

At the same time, a defence of Trump's image has come from a surprising origin: the director of information at Russia’s ministry of foreign affairs came forward to condemn the "self-incriminating" picture decision.

It's amazing: a photograph exposes those who chose it than about the individual pictured. Only disturbed individuals, people obsessed with malice and resentment –maybe even degenerates – could have chosen such a photo", Maria Zakharova wrote on the messaging platform.

Considering the favorable images of President Biden that that magazine displayed on the cover, even with his age-related challenges, the case is self-damaging for the magazine", she added.

The answer to his queries – what did the editors intend, and why? – might involve innovatively depicting a feeling of authority says a picture editor, a media professional.

The image itself technically is good," she says. "They picked this image because they wanted the president to look commanding. Looking up at a person creates an impression of their majesty and the president's visage actually looks reflective and almost somewhat divine. It's uncommon you see images of the president in such a serene moment – the picture feels tender."

His hair appears to “disappear” because the light from behind has overexposed that part of the image, generating a radiant circle, she adds. Although the feature's heading pairs nicely with the president's look in the image, "you can’t always please the subject matter."

Few people appreciate being photographed from below, and while all of the artistic aspects of the image are quite powerful, the aesthetics are unflattering."

The Guardian contacted the periodical for feedback.