Precious Photo
This is where a person carries a photo of a loved one who isn't with them around them at all times. This loved one can be somebody who is dead, far away for an extended period of time or the carrier may just be a Stalker with a Crush. If the person is dead, then this symbolizes the attatchment that the carrier still has. If they're far away, then this shows that the carrier is anticipating their return. If the carrier is a stalker then there are thousands more where that came from. It may also be an Orphan's Plot Trinket, usually when kept in a locket. Even still, if the photo is ruined, there are two possible outcomes:
- The carrier gets mad and beats or kills the person who ruined the photo.
- The loss of the photo simply "breaks" the carrier.
If the person in the photo is dead and the story is set in Japanese culture, the photo will be all the more important as a channel for the deceased person's spirit to stay in touch with those still living.
Not to be confused with Fatal Family Photo, though it can overlap.
Anime and Manga
- Hughes from Fullmetal Alchemist carries a photo of his daughter and wife 24/7. They aren't dead or far away, just at home, so they aren't personally there for him to point to and declare that they are the most beautiful wife and cute daughter in existence. Hence the photos.
Film
- Blankie on The Brave Little Toaster keeps a picture of the Master which he hugs for comfort.
- In Lilo and Stitch, Lilo keeps a picture of her dead parents under her pillow. She gets angry at Stitch when he touches it, and when his fight with Jumba destroys her house and Stitch returns the scorched picture, Lilo rejects him and tells him to go away.
- The Terminator: The photograph of Sarah Connor that John Connor gave to Kyle Reese. The photo itself is shown being taken at the end of Terminator 2.
- Robyn Starling from Tom and Jerry: The Movie had one. Hers is a locket with a photo of her Indiana Jones-esque dad. Who turns out to be alive in the end.
Live-Action TV
- On Time Trax the avatar of Lambert's Magic Computer SELMA was based on the one photo he had of his mother.
- The Pretender: The protagonist carries a photo of his mother, whom he hasn't seen since he was abducted as a child.
Video Games
- The photo on Shepard's desk in Mass Effect 2. It is also revealed in Lair of the Shadow Broker that Matriarch Aethyta has one of Liara.
- Torque from The Suffering carries one of the family he's on death row for murdering. Its condition serves as the Karma Meter that determines whether he did it.
- Noble Demon Laharl from Disgaea keeps a picture of his dead mother hidden in his room.