I found a solution to this problem. Goto to this section of wp-includes/post-template.php and replace the code.
/**
* Retrieve an attachment page link using an image or icon, if possible.
*
* @since 2.5.0
* @uses apply_filters() Calls ‘wp_get_attachment_link’ filter on HTML content with same parameters as function.
*
* @param int $id Optional. Post ID.
* @param string $size Optional. Image size.
* @param bool $permalink Optional, default is false. Whether to add permalink to image.
* @param bool $icon Optional, default is false. Whether to include icon.
* @return string HTML content.
*/
function wp_get_attachment_link($id = 0, $size = 'thumbnail', $permalink = false, $icon = false) {
$id = intval($id);
$_post = & get_post( $id );
if ( ('attachment' != $_post->post_type) || !$url = wp_get_attachment_url($_post->ID) )
return __('Missing Attachment');
if ( $permalink )
$url = get_attachment_link($_post->ID);
$post_title = attribute_escape($_post->post_title);
$link_text = wp_get_attachment_image($id, $size, $icon);
//modification introduced to force the gallery shortcode thumbnail hyperlink to the full size image directly, rather than the attachment page
$url = wp_get_attachment_url($_post->ID);
if ( !$link_text )
$link_text = $_post->post_title;
return apply_filters( 'wp_get_attachment_link',"<a href=$url title='$post_title'>$link_text</a>", $id, $size, $permalink, $icon );
}
Make sure to backup your post-template.php file before modifying the code. Thanks to Mark Pederson for the solution.
R