5 Landscape Features in Hinsdale and Naperville, IL That Can Benefit From Outdoor Lighting

Every important feature in your landscape has one thing in common: it needs to be illuminated at night. Between safety reasons, creating a welcoming feel, and letting your friends and family appreciate the beauty of your landscape, there are many reasons to carefully design a landscape lighting strategy for your property. Every landscape feature may have different needs, so let’s cover the basics. Here are five landscape features in Hinsdale and Naperville, IL that can benefit from outdoor lighting.

All Walking Surfaces

First and foremost, the walking surfaces of your landscape need to have plenty of adequate lighting in order for people to safely move around your property. These paved surfaces include the patio, the walkways, pool deck, and driveway.

If your walking surfaces are currently illuminated from above using high-energy flood lights, there’s a more effective and attractive solution: walkway lighting.

Use walkway lights near ground level around the edge of your walking surfaces. This strategy is much more efficient than overhead lighting because the light energy doesn’t have to be as bright since it only travels a short distance. Low-lying lights will also help reduce shadows and glare caused by bright overhead lighting.

Around your patio and pool deck, you can also add string lights to give a festive feeling to the space. These simple light structures automatically put people in a party mode and they do a great job of bringing a space to life. With plenty of tasteful designs, string lights in combination with walkway lights create an attractive ambience that makes your outdoor spaces feel welcoming.

A Fire Feature

It may seem counter-intuitive, but a fire feature can greatly benefit from outdoor lighting. While each fire feature will produce lots of ambient light, they’re only sources of light when the fire is burning. Fireside lighting design should be focused on being subtle enough to not compete with the fire yet bright enough to take over when there isn’t a fire going.

Adding lights at base of your fire feature will highlight the masonry beauty and let it take on a prominent presence in your nighttime landscape. These integrated lights will also safely illuminate walking surfaces.

A Pavilion

One of the best places to have any outdoor gathering, a pavilion is the place to be all summer long - and even well into the colder seasons with the addition of a fire feature and good lighting for those shorter days. Good outdoor lighting lets your pavilion take center stage. On the inside of your pavilion, use relatively bright lights that are pointed at the ceiling so that the light will bounce back towards the ground; your pavilion will become a glowing beacon, welcoming your guests to the fun in the backyard.

A Water Feature

Water features such as fountains or waterfalls can provide a wonderful atmosphere with the sounds and visuals of moving water. Add spotlights to your water features, such as within the fountain or behind the waterfall to create a nighttime focal point and add ambient light to the patio. The beautiful light waves will dance on surrounding surfaces at the slightest ripple - creating a mesmerizing effect similar to that of firelight.

Your Front Entry

Last but definitely not least, your front entry should be well-lit to create a warm welcome. Walkway lights, sidelights, and a few small, strategically placed spotlights within the landscaping will create a lovely approach to your home.