The demand for outdoor landscape lighting is ever-growing. Outdoor landscape lighting does more than simply provide light at night. It can help highlight a home or building’s identity, the textures it has, and its unique form and features.
This week’s blog post details how you can use outdoor landscape lighting to highlight the architectural features of homes or buildings. After all, stunning outdoor landscape lighting installations combine both form and function to elevate curb appeal and guarantee customer satisfaction.
Figure Out Architectural Goals
Before determining how outdoor landscape lighting can be beneficial, you have to figure out the architectural goals for that lighting to achieve. Knowing the answers will direct you in designing the perfect outdoor landscape lighting for your clients.
For example, is the reason for installing outdoor landscape lighting going to be enhancing visibility, creating a specific mood, or highlighting a focal point? Achieving these goals will require different equipment and approaches.
Having goals for architectural lighting will enable you to create an outdoor landscape lighting system that is perfectly tailored to your clients and increases customer satisfaction.
Benefits of Architectural Lighting
Architectural lighting can do many things to enhance the look of a home or building. It can highlight features such as textured walls, ornate columns, or dramatic eaves. Architectural lighting can create drama by playing with light and contrast. It can also add dimension by creating shadows. If interesting materials and textures were used in the construction of the building, such as stone or brick, or if it has interesting siding, architectural lighting can highlight them.
With architectural lighting, the beauty and details that are displayed during the day don’t have to be hidden at night.
Use the Right Techniques to Shape Light
There are a variety of methods and techniques you can use to ensure that the use of architectural lighting will enhance the aesthetic appeal of any building.
● Wall Washing:
Use wide-beamed flood lights to achieve a wall washing effect creating a smooth, even glow across any surface. This will help enhance surface continuity. Wall washing is ideal for highlighting facades and siding.
● Wall Grazing:
Well lights with a narrow light beam can be used for wall grazing. They are installed flush to the ground and close to the wall. This lighting effect will showcase the texture of the wall material and add depth. They can be used to feature stone, brick, or ornate walls.
● Uplighting:
Tall structures such as columns, trees, or flagpoles can be great focal points. They definitely draw the eye during the day. At night, installing uplights at the bases of these structures can bring them the attention they deserve.
● Downlighting:
You can add some overhead lighting with downlights. A popular lighting technique is moonlighting. To achieve this effect, downlights are mounted at a high spot, such as on trees. Moonlighting will give a soft, natural moonlight-like lighting that can be perfect for entryways or patios.
● Silhouetting & Shadowing:
To add some visual interest and intrigue, you can position outdoor light fixtures such as uplights behind objects. Doing so will give you a silhouette or shadowing effect, which creates striking shapes against walls or fences.
These lighting techniques can and will enhance any architectural element and make any property shine at night.
Architectural Lighting Starts with LightCh8in
When done correctly, architectural lighting can give a place an identity, set the mood, and increase curb appeal. To best highlight architectural features, you first have to set goals and use the right lighting techniques to best highlight the features of the building and surrounding area. If you can master these techniques, you can differentiate yourself from the competition and set yourself up for success.
If you’re looking for high-quality outdoor landscape lighting supplies, you can stop searching. Log into or create a LightCh8in account today. We’ve got everything from brass outdoor landscape light fixtures, heavy-duty cable, and more lighting accessories for a successful install.