Garden lighting has really come into its own in recent years, especially with the proliferation of exterior LED light fittings and DMX control.

​This type of lighting really draws on my experience in Film & TV and gives me a blank canvas to work with providing infinite opportunities for stunning lighting effects.

I always aim to integrate it with the architectural & interior lighting to provide a seamless flow, inside to out.

Garden Designer

Its very important for the lighting designer and the client to talk to the garden designer early in the process to ensure that everyone is on the same page so that any necessary wiring can be built into the landscaping to avoid the electrician having to trawl cables across newly seeded lawns and tiptoe between emerging shrubs and plants. By planning the position of appropriate waterproof junction boxes with the garden designer these can be hidden from view by carefully chosen plants or garden features and often painted to blend in.

Solar Power

Of course there is now a proliferation of solar powered garden lights and whilst these are great for lighting pathways, its still preferable to have some sort of control over the other garden lights in the same way as with the interior to create the right mood in the garden at night whether for relaxing or parties.

Retro Fit

Often the need for garden lighting doesn't become apparent until the garden is established so this requires a different approach to cabling. We find the most cost-effective and least disruptive way is to run a simple ring circuit around the garden (in armoured cable, either buried or clipped to the fence or wall) with various discreetly located junction boxes at suitable points. From these, a variety of low voltage lights can be connected via flexible protective conduit. The low voltage means that there is no risk of electric shock even if a fitting gets damaged and the protective conduit prevents squirrels and foxes from chewing through the cables (foxes in particular seem to love the taste of plastic & copper!).

To give individual control over groups of lights wired on this single circuit, they can be switched using wireless control modules that can be activated via an app or wireless keypad. In the same way, these lights can be controlled from wireless units dedicated to a lighting control system which also controls the interior lighting, making a balance between the two possible at the touch of a button.

Floods or Spots?

Generally speaking, garden lights don't need to be very bright to light the immediate planting around the house or steps to the patio as the darkness at night offers a blank canvas. However, a dramatic effect can be achieved by lighting larger trees at the perimeter from below to create a canopy of light whilst taking care to avoid overspill to prevent light pollution in the night sky. This can be achieved using colour change theatrical type fittings which utilise DMX and wireless control. Once you are into these realms, the combined technical & artistic skills of a lighting designer are of enormous benefit.

Less is more

Theres no need to light every part of the garden; light & shade is a good thing which creates contrast and interest.

Often, the simplest time-honoured garden lighting can work beautifully, such as festoons which have featured in countless romantic films and still evoke a special mood especially in a courtyard or rural setting.

But there are always new opportunities in garden lighting where sometimes the light fitting itself can become the main feature such as the Rolling Sky range from Linea Light.