Having been doing photos as a hobby and professionally for almost 50 years, before and after social media, including a degree in fine arts along the way, I can

Having been doing photos as a hobby and professionally for almost 50 years, before and after social media, including a degree in fine arts along the way, I can assure everyone that the idea that these ideas were formalized rules is absurd. They were design principles, yes. But they were also cliches. They were basic ideas taught in photo 101 classes, used by students until they learned enough to know when to use them and when to break them in order to be more creative and fulfill their own visions.