Outdoor Lighting is Not Just About the Landscape
When people hear terms like “landscape lighting” and “outdoor lighting” many think that they are only concerned with accentuating landscape elements. This could not be farther from the truth; one of the most commonly overlooked aspects of all outdoor lighting systems is the architectural lighting. A common misconception is that lighting the actual architecture of a home or business will lead to unwanted light passing through windows and into the building, however with a proper lighting design this will not be an issue whatsoever.
A lack of architectural lighting can result in a lack of visual balance to a property. If all of a projects lighting budget is put into lighting landscape features then the building will appear as a dark, imposing mass with just a couple of random squares of light coming through the windows. Since the only light coming from the building is from the inside, it would actually be putting the residents’ activity on display to the world, rather than putting the building on display. By lighting exterior features of a building, such as unique brick walls or stunning eaves, the architecture is what’s being presented to the world. This in turn allows the residents activity to remain more private when desired.
Effective architectural lighting can be difficult to achieve, and there’s no clear-cut formula to achieve it. Just like how every building is constructed differently, every building must be lit differently. Take these two buildings to the left for example. On paper, both would seem near identical; each consist of a chimney to the right that’s sandwiched between windows, with a large, centralized wall that angles up to a high peak, and an entrance to the left. However, in reality the lighting accentuates the unique differences between these two structures, such as the uplighting on the one-of-a-kind chimney in the top image as opposed to the downlighting under the prominent eaves in the lower image. Key shifts in lighting strategies like these are what we Erickson Outdoor Lighting are here to help with.
To have one of our professional lighting designers come out to your property for a design consultation call us at (952) 474-4536.
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