Your decisions concerning outdoor lighting will play a substantial role in the nighttime landscape of your property. To ensure that your property is as remarkable at night as it is during the day, request the assistance of a professional landscape designer to create an outdoor lighting plan that enhances the ambience and function of your landscape in Long Island, NY.
Consider Function
As with every other element of landscape design, function should be the primary consideration. A shallow investment in lighting that is pretty without giving thought to functionality will not only fail to allow you to enjoy your property maximally, it will also fail aesthetically by not highlighting the best features of the landscape. Whether your lighting is to enhance safety while walking, provide visibility for work spaces, deter trespassers, enhance a focal feature, or set a tone of elegance over your entire landscape, consider the function of the lighting and how you would like it to affect the various areas of your property as the initial step of your landscape lighting design.
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Comprehensive Plan
A comprehensive design plan should always be the goal. In an effective outdoor lighting plan, various elements overlap to ensure that balance, unity, and movement are adequately maintained. The safety of steps, driveways, walkways, and patios should first be considered. Next, consideration should extend to trees, focal features, and architectural highlights. Finally decorative lighting can be considered to add that final touch. This way, a layered approach can be taken that provides both function and ambience.
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LED Advantages
Choosing between halogen and LED lighting may have formerly been a difficult decision, but the advantages gained through developments have made the choice much more obvious in recent years. LED is now the vastly superior choice. With LED bulbs, you will find that the feature will have a longer life, as well as maximized durability. This strength and the quality of light makes LED the wise choice for outdoor landscaping use, particularly for walkway and functional lighting.
Consider Options per Range and Direction of Lighting
Lighting can range from an overall highlighting of a wide space, task lighting which is specifically centralized for a purpose in a particular location, or accent lighting which is generally used to highlight certain focal points or architectural features. As a landscaper maps out the property, he/she will identify the areas where you need light and what type of lighting style is best suited.
The direction of the lighting is also important. Downward facing lights can be used for moonlighting, adding a romantic, natural feel to the landscape. Up-lighting is more dramatic with a bold light directed up against a particular feature. Finally, cross-lighting deals with illuminating the area from both sides. Decisions concerning the type and direction of lighting should include guidance from a landscape professional, who can ensure that your style choices also match your functional goals.
What to Avoid
The best rule of landscape design is to remember that more than enough is too much. Overwhelming your property with light will negate the enhancement of curb appeal. Avoid both too much lighting as well as too high a voltage for your bulbs. Furthermore, be careful not to direct the lighting onto your neighbor’s property, shine lights directly into windows, or over-power the night sky.
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