Take a look at these commercial lighting design tips that will help bring out the best in your business.
Lights can make any business stand out among others. The only question is: how do you know where to put your lights. Installing lights on your property isn’t as simple as it may seem. Depending on where your lights go, you can highlight certain features of your landscape and make your business more appealing to potential customers. Take a look at these commercial lighting design tips that will help bring out the best in your business.
Layout Considerations
There are two primary considerations you’ll have for your lighting: functionality and visual appeal. A tip for commercial lighting design is to survey your landscape and think about how you want to use your outdoor area. Maybe you have an area outside where you seat customers. Perhaps you have outdoor features you want to highlight, such as fountains or gardens.
Commercial lighting design comes with understanding what parts of your outdoor landscape require lighting for appearance and safety purposes.
Lighting Techniques
Once you’ve decided which areas of your business require lighting, you have to choose which technique is best for each area. There are a couple of choices to be made. First, you have to decide if you want ambient lighting or spotlighting. Then, you choose between downlighting and uplighting. Both are useful in commercial lighting design, and they each come with their perks and purposes.
Ambient Lighting
Also known as general illumination, ambient lighting is best used in places where many people are likely to gather or in spaces where lighting can be used to promote safety. Lights with wide beam angles are preferred for this type of lighting, but you can also use fixtures that help diffuse the light so that it covers a wider space.
Spotlighting
If you’ve ever been in or seen a play, you’ve seen what a spotlight does, and it’s no different in commercial lighting design. Spotlighting is used to highlight specific areas of your landscape. Floodlights that have narrow beam angles are better for spotlighting.
If you’re using spotlighting for decorative purposes, focus on one or two features you want people to see. If you’re using spotlighting for more practical purposes, try using it on important areas of your business, such as the entrance. If you highlight too many features, people won’t know where to focus their attention, so don’t go too far when using spotlighting.
Downlighting
Downlighting can be used both for ambient and spotlighting purposes. Just as the name implies, downlighting is a commercial lighting design method in which you place lights in high places and shoot them downward at sections of your landscape or business.
Uplighting
Uplighting is primarily used for decorative purposes. Contrary to downlighting, uplighting points light that starts on the ground upwards. It’s usually used to create a dramatic effect because it contrasts the bright lights with shadows that it creates.
Check Out Our Services From CMI Lighting
With over 35 years in the industry, CMI has an array of equipment to handle the logistics of any in-house job. We also frequently provide solutions to property managers and upcoming developments. CMI Companies provides services in Mid-Atlantic Region and proudly serves clients in Northern Virginia, Maryland, Richmond, Southern Virginia, Manassas, Prince William County, Fairfax County, Rockville, and Prince George’s County. Also, check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.