Food imagery has been a crucial area of research for marketers and advertisers. This dissertation aims to investigate various visual elements in food images that could impact consumers’ preference for the focal food item. These elements include human presence and gaze direction of human models in food images, focusing on their impact on consumers’ purchase intentions and willingness to pay for these food products. Across multiple studies, I found that the presence of human models consuming food consistently boosted consumer preference and purchase intentions, due to underlying mechanisms such as social validation and mental simulation. However, I found a nuanced boundary condition where direct eye gaze from models can trigger perceptions of territorial infringement, reducing psychological ownership and ultimately diminishing consumers’ food preferences. This dissertation also discussed the unique nature of the food sector across various factors such as its strong link to self and its high territoriality and how they link to our theory. This dissertation enriches theoretical literature by integrating social validation, mental simulation, infringement theories, and psychological ownership into the context of food advertising. Practically, it also provided actionable insights for marketers, suggesting that while human presence is beneficial, their gaze directions should be carefully designed to achieve advertisement effectiveness. Future research could explore various factors such as cultural differences and food categories to apply these findings across diverse markets.