Landscape lighting and pathway lighting fixtures are designed to be used as accent  outdoor lighting for your yard, hardscape areas, gardens, shrubbery, sculpted trees and to highlight the architecture of your home’s surroundings. Outdoor landscape lighting can be powered electrically, often by low voltage which  require transformers, evoking soft illumination at night which is aesthetically appealing. Solar lighting is also any option, however, the energy is dependent upon the sun and does not offer consistent lighting when needed. Pathlights come in a variety of shapes, sizes, designs and are highly durable when fabricated in a heavy gauge brass material which will not fail or rust. Tree lights designed as wren or hummingbird houses are also another way to highlight beautifully trimmed saplings, imparting effective shadows with light cascades, while continuing to create a more secure outdoor landscape lighting area.

Custom outdoor lighting fabricators have always involved themselves with creative projects that include the client’s input, because, after all, the client has a vision of how they want the final outdoor light fixture to look like, upon completion. From the initial design to an actual full scale hand drawn draft and pattern, prototype molds, the completion of the prototype, the fabricator should show the client each of the steps to make sure he has done exactly what the client wants.  After the design prototype has been approved, there is the finish selection, the glass choice and the actual trial testing of the fixture, the photographing of the fixture, then the careful packing and handling, prior to the outgoing shipment.

Custom outdoor light fixtures should be UL compliant outdoor light  fixtures, whether they are gas or electric. When dealing with a custom outdoor lighting fabricator, it is important that the manufactory has an excellent reputation, supported by many years of careful fabrication and expertise, with in house designers who give their attention to every detail. Whether it’s home lighting you seek or an innovative historical reproduction for your business, a custom outdoor lighting fabricator should also offer energy saving solutions in a complete range of outdoor lighting fixture styles.

Lighting

LEDS cut energy usage by over 50% when compared to using HPS lamps. So, in this case, they are more energy efficient. Remember, these bulbs/luminaires are being used for street installations in commercial applications, not residential projects. LED lamps also have a longer lifetime (about 60,000 hours when using a 67 watt bulb, then a HPS, which usually last about 20,000 to 30,000 hours, using a comparable 90 watt bulb.) Generally speaking, most people prefer the white light emitted from the LEDS over the yellow light coming from the HPS lamps.

LED bulbs are more expensive (but coming down in cost as the demand continues to grow) than HPS bulbs since they last twice as long as High Pressure Sodium bulbs (with a life expectancy of up to 15 years depending upon the type of streetlamp). This last feature truly makes them more cost effective since they don’t need to be replaced as often as HPS lamps, thus also reducing maintenance costs in the long run.

Outdoor light fixtures have taken on a whole new meaning when a client insists upon special sizes for each outdoor light application. When uniquely sized and designed backplates, decorative “baubles” for finials, gas lights over electric lights, tweaking the outdoor light fixture’s “roof” ever so slightly are called for – Voila! –  you have yourself a completely custom designed outdoor light. You cannot go to the “big box stores” and pull something off the shelf that doesn’t look like everyone else’s outdoor lantern. If you’re looking for outdoor lighting with that classically modern aesthetic or a lantern that is totally traditional, then a lighting designer can give you that personalized service, high quality materials, custom matched finishes, high end art glass, project management to ensure every detail is attained and the correct UL Label for the proper exterior or interior application.

If you want an outdoor light to last a lifetime, with all the qualities you’d expect from a uniquely made, finely crafted outdoor lantern – then enlisting the services of a design professional will not only save you money in the long run, but add value to your home, which, in today’s economy, a very important feature.