Professional Landscape Service Provider
The uplighting of ornamental grasses and some shrubs provide this luxury hotel feel in this client’s backyard. They now enjoy all of the benefits of a private backyard with the aesthetic luxuries provided by this ambient lighting around their backyard.
The purpose of these landscape lights is to provide the appropriate level of visibility to the steps that connect the deck to the patio. We ‘hid’ two of the lights under the client’s benches that wrap around the deck and installed two path lights directly into the patio, at the same time that we built the patio. By combining these lights, we are able to cast light over the entire width of the steps.
These mature evegreen trees are illuminated in a combination of ways. We have some lights buried in the ground and lighting the trees from the ground level up. We also have some lights half way up the trees with some lights aimed towards the top of the tree and the sky while other lights are aimed out at a fairly level area. By combining these lighting techniques, we are able to achieve the dramatic look that these trees can achieve.
We designed and installed a landscape lighting system that contains a variety of landscape lighting fixtures for this Cohasset family. The lighting fixtures are a combination of fixtures by Alliance and Cast Lighting. By utilizing many different style lighting fixtures, we are able to illuminate the house without casting and shadows from the foundation plants – a goal of this homeowner. Their front walkway is illuminated by path lights as well as some light that is refracting from a tree located near the walkway.
Our goal in designing this landscape lighting system is to light the front walkway without the aid of any path lights. We highlighted each tree with uplights. A portion of the light refracts (bounces back down to the walkway) when the light hits the branches of the trees. The canopy of each tree is illuminated by this uplighting method which is very important, because this family can see the canopy of each tree through their family room windows. These light fixtures are a combination of Cast Lighting and Unique Lighting fixtures.
Our landscape lighting design included this Unique Lighting path light with a 30″ stem/riser. The importance of the height of the light fixture is that by installing the fixture at the right height, we are able to cast light on the stones that will provide the most benefit to the user of the walkway. This light fixture illuminates this edge of the staircase and some of the reclaimed granite steps.
We designed a new front entrance way for this family which included a tiered front yard with stone walls, plants and landscape lights. Our brick walkway, reclaimed granite steps, natural stone retaining walls are highlighted with path lights and a fully automated landscape lighting system as well as plants that will thrive in the dry conditions near the stone walls.
As a result of our efforts, we received the following comment from our client: “We *love* it! One of our friends said that it looks like it should be in a magazine. 
And we agree!”
One of our keys to designing a quality landscape lighting system is that we attempt to have each light fixture serve multiple purposes. For instance, ornamental grasses look terrific at night when they are lit correctly. This opportunity allowed us to light a couple of the ornamental grasses with a path light. The riser/stem of this path light by Unique Lighting was selected to complement the height of the grasses so that we are able to illuminate the grasses and the walkway.
This week we completed the construction of natural stone walls using Blue Mountain natural stone for a family in Georgetown, MA. The walls, brick walkway, reclaimed granite steps, plants and landscape lights will be seen by many friends of the family tomorrow night at their get together. But, last night, they had other guests and this is the feedback which we received today “We *love* it! One of our friends said that it looks like it should be in a magazine. And we agree!”.
Pictures will be forthcoming…
I attended a seminar that highlighted some best practice design ideas for Landscape Lighting for the professional contractor. This seminar was led by an executive of Cast Lighting. I was able to see some design elements and combinations of outdoor lights that have been successfully integrated into landscapes throughout the country. These new ideas will allow us to continue creating dramatic focal features on all properties. These dramatic focal points will be enjoyed and help you see the proper perspective and depth of a property even at night.
They will be impressive whether you live in New Hampshire towns such as Derry, Dover, Greenland, Portsmouth or Wentworth-by-the-Sea or in Massachusetts towns such as Andover, Boxford, Georgetown, Lynnfield, Ipswich, North Andover, Topsfield or West Newbury.
This photo shows a Cast MR-16 bullet light after 3 years, under a Dogwood tree, with no maintenance.
