Garden Lighting - Tips And Suggestions

Gardening

oi-Suparna Chakaraborthy

By Suparna Chakaraborthy

Thursday, November 18, 2010, 17:21

With soaring electricity costs at home, spending on the outdoor garden lighting is not a smart option. But lighting is a great tool to brighten up your gardens. In such cases a few tips on garden lighting will be of great help.

Earlier the garden or outdoors were lit up, to allow people entering the house after dark to see clearly and to prevent thefts. Today landscape lighting is done to enhance the beauty of the garden. Landscape lighting has become a work of art. The aim of landscape lighting is to display the house and the garden in its entire splendor after dark. The lighting has its functional aspect as well as it provides well lit outdoors which help prevent thefts.

Outdoor lighting can be used for different purposes such as parties and special occasions. In order to save on your electricity bills use these outdoor lighting types like the solar fixtures and low voltage installations. Solar fixtures require no wiring and easy to install and reposition. If your garden is heavily shaded, low voltage lighting may be a safer choice as they are designed for low power consumption and can be placed virtually anywhere.

Upgrading your garden or backyard with outdoor lighting can completely change the nighttime landscape with minimum effort. Using the right outdoor lighting technique and good outdoor lighting ideas will allow you to emphasize the key features of your backyard and make the space a favorite for parties and special occasions. Here are a few garden lighting tips and techniques.

Garden Lighting Tips And Techniques:

1.With silhouetting the lights are directed on a flat, vertical surface behind the subject with which you are working like statuary or an interesting branch of a tree. Think of how a tree looks with the setting sun behind it. That's silhouetting.

2.Cross lighting involves the use of multiple directional fixtures with their beams aligned to cross one another so as to create softer shadows without emphasizing any one particular feature.

3.Shadowing lighting technique is the opposite of silhouetting. The lights are placed in front of the object to be emphasized so that dark shadows are thrown on to a flat vertical surface to the rear.

4.Spot lighting the fixture is also placed in front of the object, but at a sufficient distance for the beam to fully illuminate the fixture for maximum effect. Spot lighting is lovely on a piece of garden statuary, an unusual blooming plant, or on a waterfall or fountain. The technique can also be used to draw attention to garden benches, ledges, or other seating areas.

5.Spread Lighting technique is intended to call attention to ground cover and low standing pieces of shrubbery. Spread lighting is especially useful to bring out the colors in flower beds at night. To achieve proper spread lighting, place the fixtures raised or lowered to achieve the desired effect.

6.Avoid installing garden lights in the undergrowth of low shrubs or tall grasses, when exterior lighting. The beam of light needs unimpeded passage from the fixture to the focal point so there are no distracting spots of reflected light (unless you want a shadowy effect, in which case the opposite applies)

7.Don't over light. Too many bright lighting often has a garish, theatrical look. We therefore recommend only using bulkhead luminaries for security and commercial applications.

8.Take advantage of the many beam angles, frosted lenses and mounts available so that your landscape lighting suit your situation.

9.Use the highest quality equipment, and materials, your budget will allow; it will last longer and offer more options. Use fixtures that are water resistant.

10.Driveway lighting should offer safe access for pedestrians at the same time as lighting the driveway for vehicles. Either lampposts or small post lights provide an excellent solution and alternative to bulk head luminaries, where driveway lights are required.

With the evolution of lighting technology over the years, the low voltage lighting technology has come to enjoy excellent regards and popularity when it comes to aspects of outdoor lighting. Just remember these garden lighting tips to maximize the benefits of the low voltage landscape lights.