Implication of ‘camera eats first’ construct: unraveling the potentials of digital images in social media on information sharing

In the wake of the ongoing digital revolution, images have emerged as a platform for conveying multifacet information about a product or service in the increasingly competitive business environment. This study focuses on the scale development of the camera eats first construct, investigating how photographers associate the meaning of a photograph while sharing photos on their social media accounts. The conceptual understanding of the construct is influenced by the elegance of the theory of framing that evolves through three-stages—frame-building (how photograph frames emerge), frame-setting (the interplay between photograph frames and audience predispositions) and framing effects (information processing, attitudinal or behaviourial effects). Our development and validation process of a psychometric property consists of four empirical phases that support the construct and its nomological validity. Our study provides an initial exposure to scale development, using methodological rigors that consider the views of the respondents in the restaurant industry. We provide evidence that the camera eats first construct consists of five dimensions (i.e., inspiration, aspiration, food photographic identity, influencers, tailor-made food) which will enable restaurants managers to formulate informed strategies to their potential customers, providing the latest trends in the gourmet industry as well as improving and upholding the sophistication of the industry.