Southern Landscape Lighting Systems of Marietta, GA, installs and services residential and commercial LED landscape lighting systems in the metro Atlanta area. The team’s extraordinary commitment to providing beautiful landscape lighting designs, the highest quality fixtures, and excellent customer service is seen by the company’s customers every night when the sun goes down and the lights come on.
Tips for Outdoor Garden Lighting
The intentional illumination of outdoor living spaces is a popular feature of commercial and residential landscape lighting plans. The general tips and principles listed below shed light on how to accent the aesthetics and functionality of a backyard garden.
- Identify the lighting requirements for the area to be illuminated.
Many HOA covenants stipulate lighting restrictions to prevent the nuisance of light pollution. The following two principles will help maintain harmony in the HOA:
- Avoid aiming light beams at the neighbor’s windows or garden.
- Avoid excessive and unnecessary amounts of light.
- Define the outdoor evening activities that will need illuminating.
Outdoor parties on the patio, relaxation around the pool, and a quiet respite in the backyard garden need minimal lighting. Too much light neutralizes the magical evening ambiance. In these situations, less is more.
The mere application of light to disperse darkness fails to harness the artistic ability of light to create enchantment and drama in a backyard garden or sitting area. A lighting expert explains the delicate balance of light and darkness in a backyard garden, stating, “The night-lighted garden is not supposed to duplicate the garden by day. In fact, a skillfully lighted garden will present a completely different – and sometimes more alluring – appearance by night. Therefore, no attempt should be made to ‘whitewash’ the entire garden in imitation of nature’s sunlight. The result may be flat and monotonous, and the natural colors may become lost. Actually, the most satisfying ‘picture’ comes from contrasting areas of light and shadow, or from highlighting choice landscape effects or silhouetting trees.”
- Consider the application of color variations in the lighting plan.
LED low voltage lighting has advanced technologically to the point where the color of the lights can be changed without changing the bulbs or installing color filters. The tasteful application of color variations as a decorating medium is a challenging task, but lighting professionals can successfully execute colored lighting that produces impressive results. However, in the hands of amateurs, this technique can be visually unpleasant.
Color can be used to accent flowers, ornamental shrubs and trees, birdbaths, fountains, statues, and other garden decors. Color can create exotic, retro psychedelic, and other party effects in an outdoor living space.
- Recognize how colored lighting interacts with the natural colors of the backyard garden.
When implemented well, shades of white make colors pop, and white has a very natural appearance. On the other hand, green can cause foliage and grass to stand out, but the color is unnatural. Red gives the foliage a brownish appearance, while yellow makes green foliage appear sickly and dead. Blue casts a mysterious, unearthly hue, and blue spruces and pale green foliage pop with interest.
Choose a restrained palette when implementing colored lighting applications in botanical settings. Pale tints rather than concentrated hues may be less visually off-putting.
- Ensure proper fixture placement and beam orientation.
As mentioned above, avoid aiming light fixtures so that they intrude on a neighbor’s privacy. An integral feature of outdoor landscape lighting design and installation is concealing the light source without impeding the homeowner’s enjoyment of the light and its effects. Ideally, interest and attention are directed to the feature being illuminated and not the lights themselves. Exposed fixtures are distracting.
The talented landscape design professional is able to discreetly conceal lighting fixtures. The light beams seem to appear out of nowhere. Full attention is drawn to the illuminated area or landscape feature. A qualified lighting designer can overcome the challenge of preventing unwanted intrusive light and glare in the neighbor’s home and yard. Beautiful outdoor LED lighting adds value, enjoyment, safety, and security to any home or business.
To learn more about LED low voltage landscape lighting, contact Southern Landscape Lighting Systems of Marietta by phone at (678) 616-9166 or by email at [email protected].