Landscape Lighting - Lighting Design
About Lighting Design
Introduction to Lighting Design
The first step to take in Lighting Design is to determine how the lighting in your landscape will be utilized. This means deciding whether you require lighting for decoration, safety, security, property value or simply just for the visual enhancement, or even a combination of two or all of these functions. Considering Deciding on this will then make the task of positioning the lighting much easier.
Begin with a Site Map
It is important to be organized and have a distinctive plan of the Lighting design before you commence any installation. Draw a site map to scale of the landscape in its current status and incorporate your lighting design into the sketch.
This will ensure you know precisely what goes where and you will be able to see what lighting is needed for specific areas of the landscape.
Determine Focal Points
Creating a focal point in your landscape can enhance the appearance of the outlook. Be sure not to over it do though, have two or three focal points in the garden, anymore and appear to be overcrowded.
You must consider how the lighting design will enhance the forms, colors and textures of the landscape elements. You can use focal points to distract attention away from unattractive items or areas.
Find the Medium of Intensity
When design the lighting aspects of your landscape, the key is to find the medium. A common mistake in lighting design is to over light the area. Different lights have different intensities, so this must be taken into consideration. It is recommended that you use bright lights for main features, because the intensities of the surrounding lights will affect the overall design. Lower intensities will create a subtle beauty and elegance. Try not to overpower your landscape with the lighting elements. Allow for Plant Growth
It is a good idea to leave extra electrical cable for each fixture when installing landscape lighting. This will allow you make changes if desired once the installation is complete. This is a common routine amongst installers as it allows room for plant growth over many years.
Invest in an Efficient Electrical System
The heart of lighting design for your landscape is the transformer that supplies power to whole system. The transformer converts the 120 volts into safe amounts of 12 volts and disburses it to each circuit. Be sure to use the appropriate sized cables and connectors to allow for the distance between lights.
Take note of the wattage associated with the individual lights for the landscape so as you can be certain the transformer will efficiently supply power to all of the fixtures.
These are just a few helpful hints to get you started. The lighting design for your landscape is just as important as the landscape design itself. Plan smart and plan ahead, and the results will be well worth it. Enhance the appearance of your landscape with a lighting design that will give you and family the opportunity to sit back and enjoy those hot summer nights in a beautiful and serene setting in your very own backyard.
