Landscape lighting ideas you must try around your home to create a magical atmosphere. Your home can be as beautiful as they come, but if the landscape lighting isn’t proper, it will merely look like a house and not a home. Lighting helps to set the mood and highlight features you want to show off while detracting from those you’d prefer to hide. Making this happen will involve knowledge of the different landscape lighting techniques and deciding which is better suited for your house and yard. In this article, we bring you 13 other landscape lighting techniques you can use to get ideas for your landscape lighting.
Up-lighting
The up-lighting technique is used to direct attention to a particular object in the landscape by directing the light such that it shines on the object from below. This highlights the features of the object, creating a dramatic and bold effect that enhances the feeling of security in the yard.
To achieve the best effect place and angle your spotlight facing up from the bottom of the object you would like to focus on. The featured subject could be a statue, tree, or any other attractive object of your choice within the yard. If you are lighting more than one object, ensure you locate them close to each other to prevent black spaces between them. For example, if you love dramatic scenery, you could install many spotlights focusing on the same object from different directions.
Silhouetting
As the name implies, this technique creates silhouettes in your landscape. It is also called backlighting because the light source is placed behind the object to be silhouetted.
To achieve silhouetting choose an object with a peculiar shape. If you choose a basic object, you risk creating a silhouette that everyone will find uninteresting. After selecting a fascinating subject, place your spotlight behind the object such that it is aimed at whatever is behind the object of interest rather than the object itself.
Shadowing
This technique is quite similar to the silhouetting technique, but rather than creating a solid dark outline of the object, it is used to cast the object’s shadow onto another surface.
Here, the spotlight is placed in front of the object such that its shadow becomes projected onto the surface behind it. If the object is a tree in front of the house, its shadow would be cast on the wall of the house, showcasing the delicate features of the tree right on the wall.
Wall Washing
Wall washing is possibly the simplest landscape lighting technique there is, as it only involves lighting a wall surface. The light source used in this technique should be subtle. It is placed some feet away from the wall surface and angled sideways so that it gently washes over the surface of the wall. We really like this technique because it gives the home some street presence.
Downlighting
Downlighting is a landscape lighting technique that lights an object from top to bottom in a way that draws attention to the object and not the light source. This can be done on trees, statues, and accessories around the yard as well as on the house itself. Place the light source inside the top of the objects to be lighted such that the light is pointing downwards and properly highlighting the object or surface.
Moonlighting
This technique is used to create a similar effect to how natural moonlight looks when it shines down on surfaces. It is achieved the same way downlighting is, but the light is dimmed to create a subtle effect.
Accenting
Other landscape lighting techniques like up-lighting and downlighting are used to achieve this as the idea behind it is to simply accent certain features of the lighted object. It is best to use narrow beamed light for accenting because wider ones might light up the entire object/surface and not give the desired result.
Path Lighting
This technique is used both for its beauty and practicality. By lighting the path or driveway to the home, you create the desired ambiance while ensuring people won’t trip when walking in your yard at night. In addition, techniques like up-lighting or down-lighting can be used to add the touch you’d like to your path lights even as you prevent slipping in your yard at night.
Grazing
This technique is very similar to wall washing and it’s used to highlight the texture and architectural character of the subject. However, with grazing, the light source should be strong enough to light the entire surface, then placed no more than one foot away from the surface and angled entirely parallel to it so that the light beams “graze” the ground. This adds depth and texture to the surface and is especially beautiful on brick or stonework.
Step Lighting
The primary purpose of lighting stairs is to make it easier and safer for people to see as they make their way to and up the stairway at night. To accomplish this, light sources (particularly LED lights) are placed on each step riser.
Deck Lighting
Like path lighting, this technique is an option that is primarily chosen for its practicality. Homeowners who would like to use their deck at night opt to use deck lighting to achieve this by simply installing lights on specific parts of the deck.
Lighting Water Features
You must try this technique if you have a pool, pond, river, or artificial fountain in your yard. Doing this creates such a tranquil and ethereal feel when seen that you will probably find yourself standing and enjoying that view almost every night. You can use up-lighting or shadowing to make this happen and set the mood as you like it.
Floodlighting
The name of this technique doesn’t do it justice: it usually conjures up an image of light so bright it could light an entire street! But, contrary to popular belief, floodlighting involves installing light all over the property and yard so that not just one area but the whole yard is illuminated.
Floodlighting your house involves using almost all the landscape lighting ideas that have been addressed in this article. This makes it best to enlist the help of a landscape lighting service to come up with different landscape lighting ideas for your entire property.
In Summary
As you brainstorm to decide what type of lighting to use around your home, remember that you are not limited to just one option. Depending on the size and features of your yard and building, you can choose many different techniques as long as they serve the purpose for which they are installed.
If you’re looking to start turning your property into a magical landscape at night, contact the Light Owl team and bring the magic to your outdoor space.
