Remember Myspace Tom? You know, the guy who automatically became your first friend when you signed up for the social-media site way back in 2003? Turns out the Myspace founder, whose real name is Tom Anderson, retired back in 2009 and has dedicated his time off to traveling the world and becoming an amazing photographer.

Anderson posts his travel photos to Instagram under the handle @myspacetom (natch), where his profile reads, "Former 1st friend, enjoying being retired." He's accumulated an impressive 284,000 followers, despite only taking up photography as a hobby four years ago.

Check out some of these shots. Incredible, right?

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Anderson says he was inspired to get into photography after taking photos on a trip to Burning Man. “When I looked at some of the shots I got, I couldn't believe they had come from my camera. I was immediately hooked.”

Of all the places he’s been so far, he says his favourite spot to shoot is Myanmar.

“The place is so wonderfully romantic — an old culture, traditional dress, amazing temples,” Anderson says. “I like finding places that feel untouched by the modern world.”

He has no plans to slow down, either. His itinerary for the next month includes China, Budapest, and Moscow, and he ranks Africa high on his travel bucket list.

“I’d like to try my hand at photographing the wildlife there,” he says. “I have only been to Morocco, never to the Savanna, Namibia, or any of the places with wildlife.”

When he's not traveling, Anderson divides his time between Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Hawaii, a place often featured in his photography. He's even sponsoring a contest on Instagram for one of his followers to win a trip to Oahu.

And in case you were wondering: Yes, he's still using the same lo-res pixelated profile picture that he did back in 2003 when he created Myspace.

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Bear Grylls//Digital Spy

Never change, Tom.

From: Cosmopolitan US