A National Geographic photographer gave me one tip for taking pictures on my phone and it immediately made my photos stand out

• To take better photos on my phone, I asked National Geographic photographer Kiliii Yüyan for tips.
• Since they're thin and lightweight, phones can capture angles most people can't see, he said.

When I graduated college with a photography degree, I would have told you that there's nothing your iPhone camera can do that a professional camera couldn't do better.

I would have been wrong.

It's been nearly a decade since I started photo school. Now that I work as a travel reporter, documenting places while experiencing them, I thought it was time to learn about my smallest camera — my phone.

I wanted to learn from a pro — so I turned to National Geographic photographer Kiliii Yüyan, who has documented life around the world from the Amazon to the Arctic. He gave me four tips, including taking your time, shooting a lot, and getting closer. I thought most of these tips were useful for any camera, but one made me realize that there are some shots only a phone can capture.

Treat all photos like selfies

Yüyan said to take advantage of how small and lightweight phones are by shooting from angles we don't often see while observing the world.

"It becomes a habit to use the phone at eye level, but if you watch someone who is good at selfies, they move the phone around to find better angles," Yüyan told Insider. "The same applies to making any other photo."

For example, he said photographing a child from above can look boring, but angling a phone from beneath the child's eye level can show more of their personality and how they see the world.

"We rarely get down below a child's height to look up at the world, and that perspective can be magical," the photographer said.

This made me realize that my favorite photos of my dog, Miley, were the ones I'd taken from her level. When I take pictures of her from above, I find that I can't get a sense of her personality.

But while aiming up at Miley's face, I see how she uses her environment to feel bigger, like perching on a rock on the edge of a creek. All of these photos came from my phone, and my other cameras aren't small enough to get so low without hitting the ground.

After learning the tip, I tried it out while taking more pictures on my phone.

Here's another example of how photographing Miley from her level reveals her personality. In the photos below, I wanted to show her more relaxed side. While the first picture gives the viewer a better idea of her position, the second image using Yüyan's tip shows her calm, lazy expression. If I know Miley, this is her "pet my belly" face. I also think her arms curled from the second image's angle show how off-guard she is.

After trying out the tip with success, I felt inspired to scan my camera roll for angles that bore me and considered what could make them more interesting.

For example, I play drums, and when I'm on stage I photograph the kit from eye level. So at a recent gig, I put my phone on the ground instead of holding it in my hand. This image shows how the kit looks from an angle that people can't see, and I think layering the drums on top of each other shows how cramped the space feels.

Yüyan's tip also reminded me of another subject I've shot on my phone — the iconic Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York City.

The first time I photographed the famous tree, I shot from eye level. When I looked at my photo, I thought it looked like any other picture of the famous holiday scene.

But when I returned to try a lower angle, I thought it made a more unique image. Since my phone is small and light, it was easy to stick it beneath some foliage and point it up toward the tree. In the new picture, I see layers of smaller plants in front of the tree and the tops of the buildings surrounding it, giving me a better idea of its scale, which was previously missing.

In practice, I've found that the best thing about Yüyan's angles tip is that it works with any subject, from animals to landmarks to instruments. And I can't wait to see what else I can come up with.