When I go out to eat with friends or family or even myself the first thing I look for is the reviews about the place, not its photos. For me personally, I believe that people are too dependent on their phones when it comes to food. While social media is one of the best ways for restaurants to get free press, I think that it takes away from the enjoyment of the meal. When it comes to eating out with my family we have a rule that phones must go away when food comes, but today’s society has made that idea outdated.

Now don’t get me wrong taking pictures of like a huge black tap shake or a 13-layer piece of cake looks nice but taking a picture of every plate of food that you consume, isn’t that a little overkill? But I also always have to remember that in the field that I am in photography is a must in the hospitality business. Without it, we wouldn’t have the advertisements that we have.

Even though I don’t think that we should take pictures of every plate that we get at a restaurant I really enjoy taking pictures of the dishes I make because I am always surprised at my abilities.

The use of social media in hospitality industry became a must nowadays. Especially with the fact that everyone has a smartphone and internet is available everywhere.  People post photos of their daily life on the social platform and some people just love the feeling of taking photos and making sure that their valuable moments are being recorded somewhere.

It’s not surprising that restaurant owners are paying for people to take photos of their food. Those people know how to take appetizing photos that draw attention. Those people have a lot of followers in the first place and they are popular, just like any other celebrities. Their followers may go to the restaurant just because that they went. Photography on social media is a great way of advertising.

I personally don’t like to take pictures and post them on those social platforms because I’m the type of person who is not active and like to live in my own world. However, I do use social platforms such as Instagram and Facebook as a way of getting connections with the society. I get my daily news from those social platforms. Even though I don’t take photos of foods, my friends do. Furthermore, we make decisions about what to eat based on pictures on the menus most of the time; and we always go on Instagram to see how the food looks like before we decide whether to go in the restaurant and try their food. People nowadays care more about how the food looks like rather than what it tastes like. Some people don’t even like the food, but they go to take a picture with the food because it’s a “trend”.

Chirs Raghubir

ARTH-1100

Prof. Cheng

Photography has been around for many years, but in this era, it seems that photography can tell a story without someone actually telling it.  Many people today are obsessed with taking a photo of their food when out dining and posting it on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, etc. Most are posting, so their friends and family can see, and like their pictures, but sometimes the pictures are viewed by numerous people around the world.

I have a tendency to take a picture of my food when I cook, but sometimes it takes about 2-5 attempts to get the perfect shot. I want a shot of the food to look appetizing, want the color to pop out, and an underlay or background to be just right before posting. I sometimes get likes from people that not on my friend’s list, so I know it’s reaching a vast number of people. They say most people eat with their eyes first before the taste.

The internet is the number one avenue that people used when searching for anything, including food. Usually, the first thing that pops up when a search is done for a restaurant, it’s usually a picture of food. A picture can represent numerous interpretation without writing any words, or to describe it.

Many people now are using a hashtag in order to do searches, which seem to a phenomenal way to do a search on social media. I think the social media world is a great tool to use to advertised and reach millions of people to expand or showcase your business, plus it doesn’t cost anything.

With the increasingly use of social media, apps like Instagram have a huge influence on people’s decision making, such as which restaurant to dine in for next meal. Users of Instagram are able to find new restaurants by looking into the posts on Instagram. With the beautified pictures and captions of the food, followers of that certain Instagramer will be easily convinced to try that restaurant.

Photography, food and social media created a new business opportunity for both the restaurant owners and social media users. It is no longer peculiar for restaurant owners to pay for certain Instagram users to take a photo of their food and post on Instagram. The photo posted on Instagram will then act as advertisement for the restaurant. By paying for the photo, restaurants are able to increase their sales and attract more potential customers, Instagram users are able to make a decent money for what they do every day and consumers are able to find new restaurant.

I personally don’t take photo of what I eat, but I do make my decision based on what people eat. If a photo really draws my attention, that restaurant will be the next one I am going to. Based on my personal experience, I do believe that photography is deeply connected with food industry and social media.

Photography in society today, can potentially determine the success and serve as propaganda for a business. Having a photographer come and take photos of your plates, is a business in fact. Promotion in this day in age is essential to make money. For example , if there were no emails or commercials and posters about the IPhone X, I’m sure not as many individuals would have purchased this phone. A beautiful display and enhanced photo works in the exporters favor because what is appealing to ones eye eventually becomes appealing to their wallets as well. McDonalds is as successful as it is today because of their visuals. We see a Big Mac and fresh fries and we begin to crave it. I believe there is a science behind the lens; photos of appealing food is captivating.
When I open my own restaurant I will be taking many pictures of my plates. Taking these photos will not only motivate me to be much more creative in the long run but will also get my name and visuals of my work out to the public. I do understand that having these photos of my work will hold me to a certain expectation and I am willing to sacrifice that because social media is the future. If your plate does not match the picture you took then you will be frowned upon and you may lose business. Social media is very important and a large aspect of success.

As technology expands our phones and computers have become reflections of our personalities, our interests, and our identities. Not only has it impact the world as an addictive tool to communicate, it has greatly impacted the business industry. Serving as one of the biggest platforms to stay connected, social media is now being used as a marketing platform where advertising is becoming extremely successful.

As lovers of social media, it has become normal to snap a picture of nearly everything we find attractive, interesting, or even alarming. For many, social media has become a job to which they receive a salary according to their number of followers and views. This is also being applied to the food industry. Majority of restaurants are using social media as a stage of advertisement since it has become an effective commercial marketing business. As discussed in “The Business of Designing a Restaurant for Instagram” 30% to 40% of  “Pearl’s Finest Tea” customers are people  “who catch a glimpse of the cafe on social media.”

In the food and beverage industry, photography has become a critical aspect of advertisement. It is attention grabbing to those who attempt to visit a restaurant based on the creativity of the dishes presented on the restaurant’s website, or on social media. Good photography helps build an imaginary taste of the food being presented which ultimately leads to wanting to have a real experience of its taste.

As a consumer, photography helps me decide where to eat approximately 95% of the times. It builds my taste, interest, and ambition of visiting the restaurant. It also helps me narrow down my food options and determine what appetites me the most. Therefore, it is important to have an effective photography since it attracts customers to your operation.