Hopefully you’ve been following our professional lighting advice. If so, I congratulate you on being a lighting savvy individual.

If this is our first time together, no better place to start than outdoor lighting.

Welcome! Below are some tips to make your outdoor lighting design comfortable, energy-efficient and beautifying…

• Update your home with decorative sconces and/or lanterns sized appropriately for an attractive, yet unpretentious first impression.

• Think about the contrast between your entry foyer and your outdoor fixtures.  Use dimmers for all foyer fixtures to reduce the contrast for guests leaving or entering your home, as it takes the eye longer to adapt from a bright entry to the darker walkways outside. Likewise, for guests entering your home at night, excessive illumination and glare are uninviting, uncomfortable and obtrusive-not to mention wasteful.

• Place fixtures behind shrubs and in areas where they will deliver low-level ambient illumination.  Superfluous illumination reflects off surrounding walls and walkways, creating glare and adding to “light pollution.”

• The human eye has the ability to adjust to extreme levels of light and dark, but this ability is limited when it comes to quick changes in light levels.  Strategically placed outdoor entry lighting and landscape lighting should be subtle to limit glare and create a safe, but soothing transition into the nighttime environment.

• To avoid glare, choose light sources that are shielded with decorative shades or opaque glass and use frosted bulbs with the proper wattages in decorative outdoor fixtures.

Thanks for reading and don’t forget to keep checking back for more helpful tips and tricks.

See you soon!