Whats in a name?

Thinking about the judging of my last print competition, which was a portrait only comp, it was becoming clear to me that people didnt really put much effort into naming their prints. They'd just title it 'jane' or 'joe' or whatever.

Some people did come up with strong single word titles like 'defiance' (this was a brave self portrait by one club member) which i liked but nothing that really told a story like 'The 5am Fisherman'.

This guy wasnt really a fisherman. He was a fellow photographer from the local area. But if i had just titled my photograph 'Colin' (no offence to colin and his name or other people that share it of course :) ) I dont think it would have had the same appeal.

The judge very kindly spoke about how this image had some great features such as the beard, and textured skin and spoke about the clothing being his fishing outfit. This wouldnt have happened had i just given my image a human name.

I dont think the result would have been any different as far as scores were concerned, i just think it made the judging more interesting because the viewer is invited into the subject's world - whether its real or ficticious doesnt matter. As long as there is a reaction and perhaps some thought provocation.

What do you think?