Step lights are better equipped to handle these changes. Whereas walkways and driveways are mostly flat, stairs are constantly changing in elevation, so light distributes quite differently in these areas. The taller the light, the larger the illuminated area. The lower to the ground your outdoor post lights are, the better they’ll illuminate your walkways. These lights are taller than path lights, so you may be able to use them to supplement the house lighting effects that inground lights, floodlights, and spotlights provide. Outdoor post lights are also intended for walkway and driveway use. Inground lights are installed into the ground and point upward. Unlike path lights, they can also illuminate surrounding objects such as trees and house exteriors. Like path lights, inground lighting is great for illuminating driveways and walkways. Inground lighting combines the functions of path lights and spotlights. You can use these lights to illuminate the walkway up to your home, but other types of outdoor lighting are preferable for projecting onto your home itself. They are typically staked into the ground. Path lights are smaller lights that are best used for walkways and sidewalks. Floodlights are an excellent choice for safety and security, such as illuminating your driveway. Floodlightsįloodlights have a larger beam spread than spotlights, typically around 120 degrees, and can cover larger swaths of your home. Image source: Better Homes and Gardens 2. Spotlights are excellent for showcasing a particular item in your yard or an architectural detail on your home. These lights emit a beam of light, typically no larger than 45 degrees. Spotlights are designed to light up a specific area, item, or section of your landscaping.

Once you know where your home and yard could use that extra nighttime glow, you can use any of the below seven types of landscape lighting to achieve the lighting setup you desire: 1. Once you have an idea of which areas need lighting, you can decide which landscape lighting you’ll need to buy. If your flashlight has a dimmer, even better – with a dimmer, you can play around and determine which levels of lighting work best for your house. Make sure to use a handheld flashlight instead of the one in your phone, as handheld lights tend to cover more surface area.

Change the angle of the flashlight to see which direction best illuminates your landscaping without spooky shadows or harsh, direct lighting. You can easily figure out which parts of your home are in need of that much-sought nightlight – just walk around your property with a flashlight. Of course, you’ll want to light the parts of your home and yard that receive the least light. It’s not as simple as turning on some lights - it involves using the right lights, angles, and positioning to best light up each area of your home, whether that’s a flower bed, your front door, or a small koi pond. Lighting a landscape takes a bit of planning and arranging to get it just right. Its primary functions are to provide visibility during darker hours while decorating your property. Landscape lighting is the use of lighting design, techniques, and tools to accentuate how your house, yard, and other items around your home (such as trees) look in the late evening and at night. Here are our tips for a lively, beautiful, and unforgettable landscape lighting setup. Proper landscape lighting techniques make your home look absolutely stunning at night while providing a safe and well-lit walkway for your guests from the sidewalk to your front door. Some might say the grass is always greener on the other side, but at night, the grass is pitch-black – unless you set up proper landscape lighting around your home.

Night star landscape lights