Correct lighting methods will highlight your important features and create the perfect amount of drama in a yard. Find out which techniques work best for your home’s architectural features, garden accents, outdoor living spaces, or backyard oasis.
Highlighting
This is a common and quite useful technique in outdoor lighting. Highlighting is created by placing a spotlight at the base of an outdoor feature. By varying the distance and angle of the light fixture, you can experiment with different lighting designs for unique landscape architecture goals. For example, trees often need two or more fixtures to provide sufficient illumination.
Silhouetting
Place the landscape spotlight behind the feature, aimed towards an adjacent wall; this creates an illuminated backdrop. This dark outline of the object showcases the plants and other dense features. It looks especially striking in the sunset.
Shadowing
A similar technique to silhouetting, shadowing also places the fixture towards the base of the feature, aimed towards an adjacent wall. However, the goal is to create a softer shadow, and it often works best with a tree with open, delicate foliage. The effect of the tree’s movement in the wind is sure to add drama to any home façade.
Wall-washing
Wall-washing creates a soothing and even glow that comes off the wall or façade where it’s pointed. For best results, place the lighting fixture a few feet away from the feature, and give it a sideways angle.
It maintains an even and somewhat subtle ambient lighting for the nearby area by shining it alongside the wall. Wide-angle outdoor flood light with low wattage is recommended for this as opposed to a spotlight.
Up-lighting
This technique displays a better contrast effect than typical wall-washing. Spotlight fixtures located closer to a building create a bolder effect.
Moonlighting
Create moonlighting techniques by placing a large fixture with a full glare guard high up inside a tree, and angled downwards. This effect looks like moonlight shining down through the branches. It causes attractive shadow patterns on the ground to appear, plus it provides a very natural and beautiful lighting effect.
Down-lighting
The down-lighting technique is similar to the moonlighting technique, although brighter and less subtle. Place a fixture high up, inside a feature like a trellis, tree, or eave, and cast downwards over a large area. Place the light higher if you intend to illuminate a large portion of the yard, and lower if you wish to illuminate a path or garden.
Accenting
Any lighting that draws special attention to a specific feature is considered accent lighting. Specifically angled up-lighting or down-lighting can be used as accent lighting, to point out an architectural design, plant, or other feature. Try using a narrow beam spotlight from a hidden fixture to add a flair of mystery to your accent lighting.
Path-lighting
Path-lighting is created by placing small fixtures along the borders of walkways, driveways, and patios. It is important that the style of these outdoor path lights be considered carefully. It is also important to be sure that they are positioned to illuminate the path, but also placed so that they avoid being kicked, moved, or getting in the way of the lawnmower.
