Pregnant woman becomes beautiful mermaid in underwater photo shoot

— -- Cricket Whitman is no stranger to finding unique settings for photo shoots with couples and expectant mothers. But with her sister-in-law's third child on the way, she had an idea to try something "outside the box."

"I had always wanted to do an underwater shoot," Whitman told ABC News. "I'd seen other photos of people underwater with all their clothes on, but I never really had time to do one that was so outside the box."

But that idea finally came to fruition for the photographer when she asked her sister-in-law Suzanne Pickens if she would be interested in trying a maternity shoot in the water.

"She was totally open to it," Whitman explained. "She's really easy going so it was a good opportunity to go for it."

On June 29 at Whitman's neighborhood pool in Winter Garden, Florida, the pair got their feet wet and dove right in.

"She's a dancer, so I could kind of tell her what to do and she would be able to perfectly execute it," Whitman said about her sister-in-law.

But even though the posing came naturally, Whitman admitted it was more challenging than she expected.

"It was a lot harder for both of us, which was funny so we were laughing even more than we were shooting," she said. "I have a whole new respect for people who take photos underwater."

Whitman drew inspiration from some outdoor- and water-themed photos she took of her brother Wes and sister-in-law the day prior, saying the pair takes snorkeling trips and are "very outdoorsy."

"I almost didn't post it because these photos were so out of what I normally shoot and I'm very critical of myself," Whitman admitted.

After she received positive feedback on her website and blog, she said, "Honestly, I was surprised."

"It makes me want to do some more," Whitman continued. "Even my own kids want me to do underwater shots of them now!"

She said some of her clients have already reached out, interested in doing it for their own maternity photos.