People in Hawaii are outraged that Bermuda has used a photograph showing a woman on one of their beaches without acknowledgement, according to a journalist on the islands.

The Royal Gazette revealed yesterday that three pictures used in Bermuda's current advertising campaign were shot outside the Island, including one of a woman on a beach in Hawaii.

Tourism Minister Renee Webb yesterday defended the use of stock pictures, saying the photographs were designed to create an image - and that Bermuda could deliver all that was promised in the advertising campaign. The daily Star-Bulletin newspaper in Honolulu picked up on the controversy yesterday after an international news agency put out the story.

Erika Engle, a business reporter on the newspaper, said yesterday: "We are all shocked and indignant, and also thankful.

"We are thankful (for the publicity), but, gee, give credit to us next time. Associated Press has picked it up and its gone statewide here. We'll run the AP story and I'm exploring it from a business advertising agency perspective."

Mr. Engle said he had been told by the Hawaii Visitor Convention Bureau, that the Bureau only ever used pictures of Hawaii in its promotions.

The other images used in Bermuda's campaign which were not shot on the Island were of a diver swimming among a school of fish, thought to be barracuda and possibly shot in the Seychelles, and a woman swimming with a dolphin, believed to be in Florida.

Local photographer Graeme Outerbridge, the vice-chair of the National Liberal Party, denounced the use of images from overseas as dishonest.

But Ms Webb yesterday insisted the Island had been correct to allow its advertising agency Arnold McGrath to use images outside Bermuda.

"Use of stock photography in advertising is standard industry practice - and is a leading trend due to the availability of excellent and varied talent combined with the cost efficiencies that often represent 75 percent savings over commissioned work," said Ms Webb. "We used stock photography in this campaign to provide maximum creative impact with superior fiscal responsibility.

"By using a combination of assigned and stock photographers (four Bermudian) we were able to represent the varied impressions of our visitors through the multiple photographers' lenses.

"Advertising is about conjuring up an image - there is no feeling depicted in this campaign that the Island doesn't deliver up beautifully.

"In the actual use of the image that Mr. Outerbridge mentions, the photograph is cropped so that it only features the woman and none of her surroundings. This is standard practice in creating the most artistic impression in photography."

Ms Webb told the House of Assembly that four Bermudian photographers - Scott Stallard, Roland Skinner, Ian MacDonald-Smith and James Cooper - were paid a total of $54,600 for their work in the campaign, whereas the foreign photographer who supplied the disputed images, Anne Menke, got $28,000.

Mr. Outerbridge was sticking to his guns last night, hitting back at Ms Webb, who alleged on the electronic media, he said, that he was disgruntled because he didn't get any of the work.

"The Minister accused me of sour grapes, but that's not the case," said Mr. Outerbidge last night. "The issue is the fidelity of pictures and principle of using photographs not of Bermuda. The point is that Hawaii is not Bermuda and it doesn't matter if it is a portfolio picture, it is not Bermuda.

"The minister did not address that. She said stock pictures are used all the time, but if it is not Bermuda, it is dishonest to pass it off as Bermuda."