Modern Outdoor Lighting

The purpose of modern outdoor lighting is to place an emphasis on architecture in such a manner as to create a sense of living outdoors. Modern outdoor lighting is effect oriented, not function oriented. It is as if the feeling of being inside has been removed from the home interior and placed around structures and gathering spots around the yard to create an outdoor living experience. Selective illumination is then placed around trees and gardens to differentiate the organic nature of outdoor space from the more sterile and cerebral elements of the interior. This has to be done very selectively, however, so as not to undermine the modernesque feelings we are trying to create.

Showcasing the architecture of the home itself is top priority in a modern outdoor lighting design. The house is obviously the first thing people see when they enter the property. No matter what is done on the landscape that surrounds it, the house defines the experience of being on that property by virtue of its size and function. It is the largest and most dominant feature on the landscape, and it is represents the most personal and private elements of human life. Each house has certain features that distinguish it from neighboring residences. These features tend to give the house a life of its own, and they tend to attract homeowners who feel these designs reflect their own personalities and lifestyles.

The modern outdoor lighting expert understands the importance of home architecture and knows how to find these structural keynotes that work as the basic points of definition for the entire structure’s design. These elements must be illuminated at night to maintain the position of defining prominence that they hold during the day. In order to do this properly, landscape architects must walk 360 degrees around the house, noting these features from a number of vantage points to find the highest points of power to illuminate. When the survey is complete, they document their findings in the landscaping plan, and then contract a professional lighting firm to handle the installation.

The equipment installed in modern outdoor lighting should ideally be manufactured in the United States and warranted for at least 3-5 years against equipment failure. It should be manufactured at specification grade—a level of quality that far surpasses retail home lighting fixtures. These fixtures can be installed by the outdoor lighting designer in one of two ways. They can be placed in relatively concealed locations to create patterns of apparently sourceless illumination over rooftops, balconies, and chimneys. Or, they can be installed as decorative elements in their own right that are mounted in clearly visible locations. In either instance, the angle at which the light is directed at the rooftop, balcony, window, or chimney is the critical issue here. Without proper angle of incidence, there will be glare that can spill over into neighboring properties, or there could be shadows that could hide your home in the night.

Once the home is lit, a circle of light expands outward into the landscape. Public gathering places like pools and patios are always given special attention in modern outdoor lighting. With the right lighting design, a pool will become a mirror to the home, and its patio will become a new form of living room, punctuated by anything from decorative lamp posts that stand like sentinels around its perimeter to pool of artificial moonlight cast by mercury vapor lights around the bottoms of nearby trees. Ornamental landscape features like statuary and fountains are also given special treatment in modern outdoor lighting. Because they are artistic creations, they contribute a powerful sense of a truly human living experience that is definitively lived outside.

At the same time, the landscape designer has to balance the modern sensibility with a lighting design that pays homage to the natural world that surrounds these islands of comfort. Many times, bamboo, Japanese yew, and larger boxwoods can be planted near a garden patio, outdoor fireplace, fire pit, or Zen garden patio. Modern outdoor lighting experts can turn scenes into outdoor living rooms that further bring the indoors to the outdoors, the comforts of the home to the diversity and freedom of the yard.