Thinking up a few good landscape lighting ideas may be a bit challenging for some people. However, it need not be that hard, and it can actually be a pleasant if not fun experience. These seven easy tips will show you how to use your creative imagination to easily come up with your own great lighting ideas for your landscaping.
Think About Any Unique Features That Would Benefit From Lights
It’s true that some landscape features look rather ordinary during the day, but tasteful nighttime lighting can bring out a variety of rich hues, colors and effects.
Places that can benefit from lighting include driveways, walkways, walls, steps, statuary, water fountains, trees, shrubs, patios, decks, and borders.
Use a Flashlight to Simulate the Effects of Lighting
When it gets dark, get a flashlight, put fresh batteries in it, then go for a walk through your yard, flower beds, walkways, and other landscape areas you would like to light. You are going to use the flashlight to simulate different lighting effects.
Aim a beam of light on objects you think you may want to highlight. As you shine the light, observe the different effects, contrasts, and shadows that are created on features such as shrubs, trees, and other landscape elements. Vary the setting on the flashlight between flood light, spotlight, and in-between, and make note of the angles and positions that look the best to you.
Visualize the Effects
Use your mind’s eye to visualize how you can use various lighting methods to re-create the effects you simulated with the flashlight.
Some of the popular lighting methods include path lighting, wall-wash lighting, shadow lighting, floodlighting, spotlighting, backlighting, downlighting, and uplighting. See your landscape come alive at night after you install some light fixtures in a few strategic locations onsite.
Write Your Ideas in a Notebook
After you have some lighting ideas, don’t forget to write them down in a notepad or organizer. Even though you may have a good memory, it is still possible to forget something important if you don’t write it down.
Draw a simple map of your landscape layout, and plot each point where you want to place a light fixture. You may need to look back on your notes when you go buy your lights online or at the store, so keep them with you.
Search Online for More Ideas
For even more ideas, go online to conduct a search. There is virtually unlimited information on the internet about landscape lighting and many other fields of interest. Performing a few quick searches online is a good way to find more ideas.
Search Online With Specific Keywords
A general keyword phrase such as “landscape lights” may yield some results that are not that useful in your search for new ideas, i.e. product sales pages. Try doing a specific, targeted keyword search with phrases such as “ways to light a landscape,” or “landscape lighting ideas.” There are numerous forums, How-To and DIY websites such as E-How, Yahoo Answers, Google Groups, and others where you can get some good ideas.
Books and Magazines – Take a Look!
Besides searching online, don’t forget about home-and-gardening books and magazines for even more helpful landscape lighting articles and advice. Visit your local home improvement store or nursery and take a look at the magazines and books for useful lighting tips and ideas.
There are numerous landscape lighting ideas you can use, so don’t limit yourself. Use your creativity and imagination, and just go for it! Lighting up your outdoor landscaping will not only increase your home’s beauty, but will add a measure of safety and security as well.
