Clever Use of Outdoor Landscape Lighting
There has been some debate about what is the best way to use landscape lighting. Are you lighting your entire yard evenly? Or do you focus on certain areas and features to bring out their natural beauty? Each approach has pros and cons. However, with the advent of new technologies in outdoor landscape lighting, there is no reason not to take advantage of all the benefits that beautiful landscape lighting has to offer.
Attractive landscaping is the result of hard work and creative design - so why are so many homeowners failing to realize their landscape's full potential?
Beautifully styled yards and home exteriors can be a whole new world at night, but they're often lost in the dark or illuminated with ugly or inadequate lighting.
The good news is that there is a range of tools and techniques available to help get the best out of your nighttime landscape lighting and increase your safety and home security in the process.
The Debate About "What Works"
In general, landscaping is a highly subjective pursuit. It ultimately comes down to personal taste and the features desired in the area. What is beautiful and creative to one person may be an eyesore to another - and that's okay. A person's home is their castle. That being said, there is definitely room for consensus as to what doesn't work when it comes to landscape lighting:
- Overly bright industrial-colored lighting in residential landscapes
- Oversized or inappropriate outdoor light fixtures
- Separate lighting or "haunted house" effect
- Obnoxiously loud colors or "disco-ball" effects
A creative landscape doesn't have to be unique; it just needs to enhance the landscape and create a certain mood. Trial and error is always okay - it's supposed to be fun after all!
Here are some techniques landscape lighting professionals use to get the most out of any outdoor setting:
Look for and Take Advantage of Opportunities for Shadowing and Reflection
What may appear to be an ordinary exterior wall may be a hidden artwork; all that is needed is some specially placed lighting. Spotlights of various intensities create dramatic and engaging shadows on plants, sculptures, architectural corners, or any other object in your yard.
This technique works well with vibrant and softer earth tones and works equally well with darker and brighter lighting schemes.
Reflections can also be cast on lawns, rocky areas, pools, ponds, and floors. This is one of the easiest ways to bring a dramatic, alluring glow to your landscape.
Experiment with Color and Contrast
While something like a blinding strobe might not be the best option for outdoor lighting, there's still no shortage of room for experimentation with bulb colors.
Simple white and yellow bulbs are still the kings of outdoor lighting, but more and more people are incorporating various shades of blue, red, purple, and green into their schemes.
Colored bulbs work well when used with the aforementioned shading and reflection techniques, adding extra contrast and creating more artistic areas of focus.
Moderate to bright red light will clearly accentuate gardens and planting areas. Water features provide perhaps the most stunning canvases for colored lights; those with flowing water provide ample opportunities for shimmer and bounce.
Lighting Does Not Have to Be Organized
Organized lighting is great, especially when used to line walkways or provide an evenly lit area. Lining sidewalks and driveways with equally spaced lights is a common practice for a reason - it looks great. However, landscaping tends to be more eclectic and abstract, and its lighting can be the same.
Having an even amount of light throughout a landscape area isn't unattractive, but it's not very inspiring either. Arranging lights in a "staggered" pattern throughout your yard or garden can add depth to the entire area, making it appear larger and more mysterious.
Get Started with Smart, Beautiful Outdoor Landscape Lighting
Now that you know the benefits of landscape lighting, it's time to get started! Smart outdoor landscape lighting is a great way to increase the value of your property and create beautiful landscaping. With new technology at hand, there's no reason not to take advantage of all the benefits that landscape lighting has to offer. If you want to buy outdoor landscape lighting, welcome to contact us.
TFB Lighting is a professional custom outdoor landscape light manufacturer. The company integrates design, development, production and sales, has a strong technical force, advanced technical equipment, scientific management, and advanced concepts. TFB Lighting has always insisted that quality is life for many years, strictly implemented the ISO9001-2000 quality management system certification standard, and instilled in every employee the concept that lighting is art, there is only better, not the best.