Landscape Lighting Ideas to Make Your Outdoor Space Look Stunning at Night

Outdoor spaces sometimes get overlooked and forgotten once the sun sets and darkness envelopes the horizon. What people fail to realize is that with proper outdoor lighting, you can make your outdoor space look stunning at night. Winnipeg landscapers recommend the following lighting tips to help you enjoy your outdoor spaces after dark.

Install a Unified Lighting System with Controls

When it comes to making a series of outdoor lighting elements work, you need a unified system that lets you control everything. There is a multitude of options out there that can either work together or independently, such as:

• Downlighting
• Water-Feature Lighting
• Pathway Markers
• Uplighting
• Architectural Lighting
• Porch Lights

A single system is easier to install and expand, maintain, and operate than individual lights added over time. Control lighting allows you to create different lighting zones with greater flexibility in how those zones are used. Some of them can be used purely for aesthetic purposes, while some can be utilized as a security measure to light up your garden or backyard at night. The important thing is, whatever lighting system you choose, you should be able to control them any time you want.

Landscape Lighting Placement Matters

Nowadays, the number of lighting options you can find are so varied that they can literally be placed anywhere on your property. Winnipeg landscaping experts recommend prioritizing putting lighting elements in certain areas, such as:

• Paths – Walkways and paths can effectively light up your outdoor space as it acts as a welcoming part of your lighting system, providing illumination to your visitors. You don’t even have to use high-powered lights. In fact, downlights are better as it prevents glare while providing ample amounts of light to guide visitors when walking.
• Entries – Entryways should always have lights installed either to each side of a door or overhead at the front. You can also put lighting on the back and side entry doors.
• Driveway – For the driveway, landscapers in Winnipeg often recommend keeping it simple by using low-voltage landscape lighting. These are easy to install and wouldn’t distract anyone trying to park on your driveway.
• Steps – For safety reasons, steps in your driveway or just outside your door need to be lighted as well. A good option is to put lighting elements on the risers or the treads.
• Decks or Patios – A deck is a big addition to your home that requires lighting on specific areas like an outdoor kitchen, a grilling spot, or seating areas. 

Lighting Placement Should Look as Natural as Possible

You must thoughtfully consider the existing features and aesthetics of your outdoor space and try to work with them. Don’t put lighting that’s too glaring or overly illuminating that it would feel like daylight.

A popular landscape lighting design feature is to add spotlights high up in a tree, letting the light filter down through the leaves. This setup gives a muted lighting effect that adds a warm feel to the landscape that almost mimics how moonlight touches the leaves of a tree.

Conclusion

You’re wasting a lot of potential by just letting your driveway, patio, or backyard just be engulfed by complete darkness at night. When the sun goes down, outdoor lighting should take center stage to create a dramatic landscape that can work wonders in enhancing your home’s appearance.

Classic Landscapes is a design-build company providing full yard design, installation, and small renovation services to residential clients. As a Winnipeg landscaping company, we take pride in having high standards for quality and good customer service whenever we work on a project. If you need landscaping in Winnipeg, turn to our team of design professionals for your next residential landscape project. Contact us today to get started!