What is the process of creating a landscape lighting design?
So, you’re thinking about having a professional outdoor lighting system designed for your beautiful home, but you don’t know what to expect. Let’s go through the steps that we (or maybe even another outdoor lighting design firm) may go through in order to make your outdoor space look fantastic at night. The landscape lighting design process goes something like this.
After the first contact by phone or email, there is the initial face-to-face on-site consultation which may last about an hour. This is the time when the client and designer get to know each other. As a client, you will be asked questions about your lifestyle and use of your outdoor space.
- What activities do you enjoy outside in the evenings? Do you like to entertain outdoors?
- Where do you spend the most time when you are outdoors? Outdoor kitchen? Patio or pool area?
- How do you want to feel when you are outside? Romantic? Safe? Relaxed or party-ready? All of the above?
- What is your favorite feature of the house? Back yard?
- Do you have a favorite area, plant, tree or piece of art in your landscape?
- What is the view from inside your home?
The answers will help us to determine the primary viewing angles so we know where to place light fixtures to give you the best effect. Your feelings and favorites will help us to define the primary focal points.
We will probably also ask if you plan to stay at the location for the rest of your days, or if it’s a shorter term or vacation home. This information will help us determine the light levels and control features that may be important to you. If you travel frequently, you may desire a wider variety of control options; if you plan to remain into your more elderly years, your landscape lighting design may require a bit more light.
We both gain very important information as we work through this first consultation. We gather intel on your preferences and style for our landscape lighting design process; and you, as a client, are getting to know more about us as designers. You are determining our knowledge level and expertise by the questions we answer and the information we provide during the consultation. After that first meeting, if you decide you are ready to move into the design phase, the fun begins!
Preparing the actual design takes the longest amount of time. The designer will walk through the entire project area taking photos of each area where we might plan to install lighting. The creative mind is already working and taking note of what fixtures to use, where to place those fixtures, and what effect we want to achieve. Really looking at the property and landscape helps the designer to visualize the light each fixture should emit and how wide the beam needs to be to create just the right look to please the client. We may also determine the color of the light we want to use while there in this photo stage while examining plant material. Notes are taken on those favorite features, and the style that the lighting should reflect for the home. The custom design is being crafted in the mind of the designer.
The next step in the landscape lighting design is to return to the office and distill those photos and notes into a cohesive design and proposal presentation that the client can easily understand; choosing fixtures, tweaking beam spread or color, calculating lumens, and engineering the installation layout are all tasks to be considered before the plan is completed. The designer then returns to your home to walk through the design/proposal with you, explaining each area of the design and answering any questions along the way. Our presentation will be full of photos of your property and recommended fixtures so you can get a really good idea of everywhere lighting will be placed, the level of light in each of those areas and the effect that will be achieved.
The time from initial consultation to design presentation can be anywhere from several days to several weeks depending on the scope of your project, and quite honestly, how many are in the cue ahead of you. Some projects may require hundreds of photos (not all used in the presented design) and several pages of notes. These designs could translate into about 12 pages or more in the final proposal, representing many hours at the design table. All of this work explains why we charge a fee for the design phase of most lighting projects we accept. Our design fees are based primarily on the size and scope of the project. With a range of $450-$1500, most clients pay about $500 to initiate the creative design phase of the process.
Once the design is approved, installation is scheduled. Our team of professional lighting technicians work carefully to install your landscape lighting system to the specified and approved proposal minimizing disruption of your yard and neighborhood. When complete, the last step is to bring the team back after dark to make final adjustments in focus and aiming to ensure you are perfectly happy with the effects. We leave your landscape virtually undisturbed, but radiant and glowing.
Because we hate to say a final farewell to our clients, each of our custom designed residential installations come with an unprecedented service warranty that includes maintenance of your lighting system for three years granting you trouble free operation. We want you to love your lighting for a very long time!
If you are interested in landscape lighting for your home, please contact us here.
