A woman has fulfilled her childhood dream of becoming a real-life mermaid.
Julia Wheeler, 31, from Perth, Western Australia, has revealed how she can hold her breath for four-and-a-half minutes while swimming to the ocean floor.
The professional freediver has given a glimpse into her life under the sea – with breathtaking photographs showing her twirling among sea creatures and wreckage.
At the tender age of five, she started practicing holding her breath in the bathtub after becoming fascinated by the Disney movie Little Mermaid.
‘When I was really young I loved holding my breath in the bath, at school I loved swimming and living on the coast I was always in the ocean,’ she said.
‘I grew up watching Ariel and always wanted to be a mermaid, it’s a cheesy notion but it captured my imagination and I spent a lot of time in the water.’
Real-life mermaid Julia Wheeler (pictured) has revealed how she can hold her breath for four-and-a-half minutes underwater
Breathtaking photographs shows the Australian professional freediver swimming among sea creatures and shipwrecks (pictured: Julia on a WWII bomber plane and in a ship surrounded by sea creatures)
At the tender age of five, she started practicing holding her breath in the bathtub after becoming fascinated by the Disney movie Little Mermaid (pictured: Julia standing on a WWII bomber plane and in a ship surrounded by sea creatures)
And her childhood dream is going swimmingly after splashing around just hand’s reach away from pilot whales, bull sharks, manta rays and more during her time diving without any breathing equipment.
‘I’ve swam with bull sharks, Bronze Whalers and Tiger Sharks – they are the coolest creature because they are so beautiful to swim with, despite this they are unfairly thought of as man-eaters, where they really aren’t,’ she said.
‘The nature of a shark is so graceful and beautiful, it’s a pleasure to swim around them under the water.
‘I have even swam around a five-metre tiger shark and not been scared, I was completely awestruck and loved every moment.
Her childhood dream is going swimmingly after splashing around just hand’s reach away from pilot whales, bull sharks, manta rays and more during her time diving without any breathing equipment
The woman has fulfilled her childhood dream of becoming a real-life mermaid (pictured: Julia on a WWII bomber plane)
She practiced breathing in her bathtub after watching the Little Mermaid (pictured: Julia posing with an anchor in Tahiti)
The 31-year-old Perth woman took a freediving course nearly 10 years ago to become an underwater photographer
‘I did a dive with pilot whales, they are carnivores and have a reputation for being protective so I was a little nervous around them but when you enter the water, you are entering their domain at your own risk.
‘With all animals, you have to remember they are wild, you are taking the risk, nature calls the shots, while you do feel vulnerable you also feel so alive and appreciate how small we are.’
She took a freediving course nearly 10 years ago to become an underwater photographer but after entering the Australian Freediving Nationals in Indonesia competition last year she qualified for the World Championships.
‘When I started diving I found swimming with breathing apparatus really strange, so I did a freediving course and became obsessed,’ the photographer said.
She has given a glimpse into her life under the sea – with breathtaking photos showing her twirling among sea creatures
The real life mermaid has been swimming underwater after dreaming of being the Little Mermaid character from a young age
The young woman – who can hold her breath for more than four minutes – swims among sea creatures and wreckage
The 31-year-old revealed she can hold her breath for more than four minutes (pictured: swimming around manta rays in Bali)
‘Since then I’ve dived down into the deep with whales, sharks, manta rays and more, I feel a part of their world when down there with them.
‘In the ocean, I feel more alive than I do on land, all your senses feel so alert – I feel in touch with everything going on around me.
‘To me, to feel alive is to be completely vulnerable and open to everything going on around you.
‘It’s a really incredible feeling with thousands of fish around you, you feel like a part of the ocean, it’s so uplifting and makes me feel so happy.’
Swimming in the middle of a fish ball, Julia reveals how she turned a childhood dream into a reality after learning to freedive
Twirling among the sea creatures, the 31-year-old has captured breathtaking photographs of her life under the sea
Surrounded by sea creatures, the environmental activist posing on top of a WWII bomber plane and ship wreckage
The Australian opened up about exploring the fascinating world in the deep blue sea (pictured in the middle of a fish ball)
She opened up about exploring the fascinating world in the deep blue sea.
‘Part of freediving means you can spend a little more time in certain place and feel like part of the ocean,’ she said.
‘It gives you the ability to explore marine life, and the skeletal remains of shipwrecks that send my mind into wonder.
‘It is such an honor to be able to experience the beauty of WWII wrecks – something that was once in another atmosphere and now gifted to the depths of the ocean.
‘In one breath, I could swim down and cruise around the structure, take it all in, it’s invigorating and one of the coolest feelings.
She hopes her aquatic images will change people’s perceptions and help them to appreciate the beauty of the ocean
She revealed she’s more comfortable in the water than on land (pictured swimming alongside giant manta rays in Bali)
The young woman revealed how she has been swimming just inches away from sea creatures, including a giant manta ray
She’s been photographed exploring the ocean’s depths from the Solomon Islands to Tahiti, swimming among sea creatures as well as fighter jets and ships claimed by the sea (pictured swimming above the WWII bomber plane)
‘I once dived down to a bomber plane from World War II, the aircraft was 25 metres down below, looking down at the skeleton of it from the surface was intimidating.
‘But seeing the barnacles that had built up over the years and feeling the history of the plane was incredible, it was a real honour knowing I was one of very few people in the world to see that.’
Since then she’s been photographed exploring the ocean’s depths from the Solomon Islands to Tahiti, swimming among sea creatures as well as fighter jets and ships claimed by the sea.
She revealed how she’s more comfortable in the water than on land and her incredible photographs have led her to be dubbed a real-life mermaid.
Julia said in her near ten years of freediving she’s not been overly fearful of the creatures swimming around her.
She added: ‘It’s the awesome and best feeling in the world, you never know what will happen or is coming around the corner, there’s a special thing about being vulnerable while in the sea.
Her incredible photographs have led her to be dubbed a real-life mermaid (pictured swimming the middle of a fish ball)
The photographer said she is regularly quizzed by strangers about her profession with many people unable to believe that she free-dives professionally (pictured in Bali)
She hopes her aquatic images will change people’s perceptions and help them to appreciate the beauty of the ocean
Breathtaking photographs shows the Australian professional freediver swimming among sea creatures and wreckage
The 31-year-old has revealed how she can hold her breath for four-and-a-half minutes while swimming to the ocean floor
The photographer said she is regularly quizzed by strangers about her profession with many people unable to believe that she free-dives professionally.
‘People are fascinated by what I do, they always have questions like and say things like “Oh my god, I would die”,’ she revealed.
‘For me there’s nothing better, you are at one with yourself and your body, your limits are your own and it is up to you to choose what personal barriers that you want to break or work on that day, during that dive.
‘I can’t stay longer than four and a half minutes, but we all have the ability to hold our breath for long periods of time.
‘One of the first things a foetus develops is webbed hands, it’s interesting to see evolution and know we are all fish and have a closer connection to water than we appreciate.’
She hopes her aquatic images will change people’s perceptions and help them to appreciate the beauty of the ocean
Breathtaking photographs shows the Australian professional freediver swimming among sea creatures and plane wreckage
She hopes her aquatic images will change people’s perceptions and help them to appreciate the beauty of the ocean
She took a freediving course nearly 10 years ago to become an underwater photographer but after entering the Australian Freediving Nationals in Indonesia competition last year she qualified for the World Championships
The environmental activist hopes to change people’s habits to protect and reduce the amount of damage done to the earth
Julia, who is an animal and environmental activist, hopes to change people’s habits to protect and reduce the amount of damage done to the earth.
She hopes her incredible aquatic images will change people’s perceptions and help them to appreciate the beauty of the ocean.
‘People need to know how much waste we produce and if we don’t change our ways it will be too late, all of our waters will be ruined,’ she said.
‘There are over five billion particles of plastic in the ocean, everyone can do their own little bit to preserve the environment.
‘I love taking photographs underwater to share with the rest of the world and show it’s beautiful and natural.’
You can follow Julia Wheelers’ journey, please visit her Instagram: @iamjuliawheeler