Lex Poulakos: Photographer

Name: Lex Poulakos: Photographer
Address: Ottawa, IL, 61350, US
Telephone: +18159755394
Price range: $$$

Home
United States
Ottawa, IL
Lex Poulakos: Photographer

Central Illinois based photographer driven by dreamy light + a whole lot of love. Message, email, or call to book your session!

08/24/2026

Nadia is a BIG SISTER🥹
sweet sis Noa slept like a lil ANGEL and even snuck in a few cute yawns and teeny tiny smirks for us! i’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that when i first met Mason + Ariana for a couples session (where we talked about Ari wanting kids soon) wasn’t just yesterday and now they in fact have *two* beautiful babies???
also a round of applause because i am absolutely obsessed with Noa’s name!! i always think deciding on a name has to be so incredibly difficult (im also just a wildly indecisive person to begin with) and i love hearing what y’all end up choosing for your babies so much.
i’m so thankful to have been able to photograph the changing phases for these two + their family and that i’ve been able to grow alongside them 🥲🤍

Lexi Poulakos
Arianna Villanueva

08/20/2026

another Tondini boy to smother in love 🥹
it’s wild to think that i first met Em when she was pregnant with Kase and now here we are, a few years and another baby later, and i cannot imagine my life without her or her sweet boys (yeah, we can include you in that too Adam 😜)
following in his big brothers footsteps, Kam didn’t exactly want to sleep for like 80% of his session, but lucky for him he’s so damn cute so i won’t hold it against him!
i just love this little family of FOUR and i am honestly so thankful that they let me weasel my way into their lives because they can’t get rid of me now!!! hehe

i cannot wait for all of the future fun with these boys 🤍

Lexi Poulakos
Emalee Rose

08/18/2026

drenched in the summer sun (and maybe a bit of sweat) to celebrate the upcoming arrival of baby girl johnson 🤍
when i saw the feels like temp was around 103° i asked anna if she was sure she was up to it and she wasn’t phased in the slightest. thankfully we had her sweet momma with us who was equipped with multiple kinds of fans to help keep our models as cool as you possibly can be out in that heat! anna’s only question was if *i* was up for it and as a member of the chronically cold club i’m never too worried about that, but more importantly i’m not in your photos so that’s a plus for everyone involved😜 i’m honestly so happy we pushed through it because these photos are some of my favorite and feel straight out of a movie. and i don’t know about you, but i don’t think you can even tell how insanely hot it was out there in that gorgeous sun!

i remember when colton first came into the picture and i was like, “hmmm who is this? is he nice? does he deserve to be with someone as sweet and fun as anna?” and i’m happy to confirm that he is equally as sweet + fun and i truly think they are a perfect match. i love the life they’ve built together and i cannot wait to see them transition into parenthood together. baby girl is SO unbelievably lucky to have them as mom + dad (AND to have the best furry brother in william) 🥲
my countdown is officially ON and i am so ready for her to be here!! 🥹

Lexi Poulakos
Anna Marie

08/12/2026

BEAUTY BY BELLE MARIE ROUND TWO 🥵
a day spent with my little muse and her models was exactly what i was needing! sessions with isabelle always leave me with entirely too many photos to work with because she is a living breathing pinterest board and knows how to bring her vision to life. seriously, trying to narrow down photos for this post has taken me ALL DAY and there are still so many that i wish i could have squeezed in there!! we played with light, lens filters, poses, and everything else you could dream of. not only is she always down for whatever i have in mind, but she delivers EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. 💅🏼
isabelle is a literal angel girl and the IV is SO lucky to have her as their go-to beauty bestie for all things hair, makeup, + spray tans. not only does she kill it every time, but she is quite honestly just a JOY to be around so that’s a little added perk to whatever service you’re getting done 🤭
i could go on + on all day about how much i love this lil babe, but i’ll get to the point and just say you better be running over to Timber Creek Studio to get in her books ASAP❣️

Lexi Poulakos
Isabelle Collins

07/23/2026

i swear all of these Essman babies are the definition of “copy + paste” 🥹
it’s wild to think that Blake was teeny tiny the first time i photographed the Essman fam and now here we are, two babies later, and Katie’s FIRST NEWBORN SESSION! i did pop over to the hospital when Bennett was born and tag along to get some first reactions when bringing him home to sis, but back then you could not convince me of much more than that 🙃

i’m still trying to fully wrap my head around the fact that there are now THREE babes in this family. but Morgan came at the best time now that her auntie lex is in full hobby hoe mode (and that her mom sends me endless screenshots of future project ideas) 🤭

welcome to the family, sweet girl! i can’t wait for all of the future crafts and shenanigans with all *three* of my favorite Essman babies 🤍

(PS Morgan is modeling two of the many outfits available for my newborn sessions☺️)

Lexi Poulakos
Katie Essman

07/12/2026

my sweet sweet Navy Bea 🩷
i say “my” because this girl has hijacked me emotionally since the moment i met her. when she was three days old i went to meet her and came home in a puddle of emotions wondering, for quite possibly the first time in my life, if maybe i wanted just ONE. i was sitting teary eyed at my table throwing curveball texts out to some of my favorite people and i think they thought i had either been hittin’ the bottle or having an early mid-life crisis. they were all in support of my random tangent, but it was so lovingly pointed out to me that perhaps i should find a boyfriend first (arguably harder though let’s be honest) 🤪

and while the crushing feeling of baby fever may end up being more of a fleeting fog, i can promise you that i still just love this little girl (and her whole fam) so so so much, and i couldn’t be more thankful for all of the heavy lifting my co-mother Lauren did to bring her here for me. she came into this world a tiny little thing but has made her presence known from the very beginning.

seeing Ellie + Maddux snuggle on their new sister has been the sweetest experience as has been watching Lauren + Zach navigate the newborn stage together in this new season of parenthood. i have no idea how they juggle it all and occasionally with me as their unofficial co-parent/fourth child in the mix, but they do it so well.

i just love this smiley little goose, and i’m so thankful i’ve been able to be on the sidelines throughout it all. i cannot wait to watch her grow and see who she becomes. she has the best examples guiding her every step of the way so i know she will be everything that is good in this world🤍

PS — the close up of her with all of the kid’s stuffies kills me… does she not look like she could just be a little doll in the mix?! 🥹

Lexi Poulakos
Lauren Nelson

07/08/2026

the sweet in between of when 3 turns into 4🤍
we always talk about how toddlers are the tiny terrors who run the show and i often joke that they’re really my bosses, but the part that isn’t talked about enough is how sweet toddlerhood can been. the moments where emotions that are too big for their tiny bodies usually get the spotlight in our minds, but what always sticks with me are the slobbery full-mouthed kisses, sticky hands using your body as a human jungle gym, and the goofy mispronounced words that crack your heart wide open in a way that can only be done coming from an adorable toddler voice.

i’d like to think Kase knew this night was exactly what i needed. and while he gave us plenty of tongue out silliness, he also gave me so many of those moments that my personal favorite and remind me why i fell in love with photography. his toes in his mama’s hair, pushing his parents away from kissing and then belly laughing as he smooshed their heads back together, and lighting up as he took a million photos from his perspective on a camera i handed him.

because i’ve never seen myself with children people often say i don’t like kids.. which couldn’t be further from the truth (and honestly hurts my feelings). trust me, if i didn’t like them i wouldn’t spend basically everyday with them (also how did i basically transition from couples photographer to family photographer without even realizing??). while i don’t know if the 24/7 demand of motherhood is for me, i like to think it just offers up more of me to give to your babies. and by the end of the session i always leave loving them like they were my own. their artwork covers my fridge, screenshots of messages saying how they “want to see lex again”, and their sweet + silly words play on repeat in my head while i edit. and that’s why i’m always so endlessly thankful for the families who truly invite me in to their little lives each time. it really is the heartbeat of this business for me.

baby brother decided he was tired of missing out on the party and came a little early on us + i’m counting down the days until i get to meet him next week. i know i’m already going to love him so much 🤍

Lexi Poulakos
Emalee Rose

06/16/2026

my babies are having babies 🥲
i swear it was just yesterday that we were doing engagement photos and now here we are and y’all are PARENTS! and not only that, but parents to the sweetest little peanut girl ever 😭
Cami snoozed through her whole session so it’s safe to say she passed her initiation into the gang on my end! watching Kenz and Ethan in full on mom + dad mode melted my heart and made it burst with happiness for them. i cannot wait to watch this sweet girl grow and for all of the fun we are going to have in the years to come 🤍
and for all of the fun sewing/craft projects i have planned to make for her 🤭

Lexi Poulakos
Kenzie Dockendorf

Address

Ottawa, IL
61350

Telephone

+18159755394

Website

http://www.lexpoulakos.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Lex Poulakos: Photographer posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Lex Poulakos: Photographer:

Name:

Email:

Message:

Want your business to be the top-listed Photography Service in Ottawa?