Custom landscape lighting is something we’ve been doing for Houston homeowners for decades. We’ve worked on properties with large oak trees, beautiful gardens, detailed brickwork, and outdoor living areas that deserve a little more attention after the sun goes down.
Sometimes we’re brought in while a home is being built or remodeled. Other times, the homeowner has lived there for years and wants to improve the outdoor lighting. We also get calls about existing systems that never looked quite right or have stopped working.
At Illuminations Lighting Design, we handle the design and electrical installation. We look at the house, the landscaping, and how the homeowner uses the outdoor areas before deciding where the lights should go.
And we have opinions about what works.
We’ve seen plenty of outdoor lighting that’s simply too bright. Fixtures pointed straight at windows, pathways lined with more lights than they need, or trees illuminated in a way that makes the trunk look like a telephone pole.
We prefer a more natural appearance. The light should bring attention to the property itself, with the fixtures doing their job quietly in the background.
We Start by Looking at the House and the Landscaping
When we visit a property, we’re looking at more than where we can install lights.
We want to see the house from the street. We look at the front entrance, the architectural details, and how the landscaping sits around the building.
A large oak tree may be the first thing you notice when pulling into the driveway. On another property, it might be the brick columns, a stone entrance, or an interesting roofline.
Those features give us a good starting point.
We also like to see the backyard and understand how the homeowner uses it. There’s a difference between a backyard that’s mostly viewed through the living room windows and one where people spend several evenings a week entertaining.
In River Oaks, Memorial, and West University, we work around mature landscaping and homes with quite a bit of architectural detail. Many of these properties have been updated over the years, so the outdoor spaces may include newer patios, pools, or planting beds alongside older trees and established gardens.
We account for all of that.
We don’t automatically recommend lighting every tree or putting fixtures along every walkway. Sometimes a few properly placed lights accomplish more than a much larger installation.
We’d rather show off the best features of a property than make everything equally bright.
Tree Lighting Is One of Our Specialties
Houston has some impressive trees, and they’re often a big part of a home’s appearance.
Large live oaks can be especially interesting to work with because of their wide branches and unusual shapes. Two trees growing in the same yard may need completely different lighting arrangements.
A fixture placed at the base of a smaller tree might provide enough light to show its trunk and canopy. A mature oak with heavy branches and a broad spread may need several fixtures, positioned to bring out different parts of the tree.
We’ll look at the shape of the trunk, the direction of the branches, and how the tree looks from different parts of the property.
Sometimes we recommend uplighting. Other times, we use fixtures mounted higher in the tree to cast light down through the branches.
That second approach can create some particularly nice effects on lawns, gardens, and walkways. The light falls from above instead of shining upward from the ground.
We’ve installed tree lighting that requires professional climbers to reach the upper branches. Those installations take more planning, and we have to be mindful of how the mounting equipment affects the tree.
A large tree is a major part of the landscape. We want the lighting to look good without creating problems for the tree as it continues to grow.
We also consider what the homeowner sees from inside the house.
If there’s a large oak outside the living room windows, that view may be just as important as the view from the street. We’ll take that into account when positioning the fixtures.
Outdoor Lighting Has to Work Around the Way You Use Your Yard
We ask homeowners which areas they spend time in after dark.
That helps us decide where lighting will be most useful and where we can concentrate more on appearance.
A covered patio needs comfortable lighting for people sitting around a table. A walkway leading to the driveway needs enough light to see the steps and changes in the ground. Garden lighting is usually more about bringing attention to selected plants or features.
We approach each area differently.
Around a patio, for example, we pay attention to where people will be sitting. Nobody wants a bright fixture shining directly into their eyes while they’re eating dinner.
We also look at the windows facing the backyard. If the lighting is going to create glare inside the house, we’ll need to change the fixture position or the way it’s aimed.
Pool areas require some thought, too. Water reflects light, and fixtures that look fine from one angle can become distracting when you’re sitting on the other side of the pool.
Our designers consider those views while planning the installation.
We want homeowners to enjoy the outdoor lighting while they’re actually using the property, not just when they stand at the curb looking at the house.
We Pay Attention to the Fixtures You Don’t Notice
A lot of homeowners are surprised by how much difference fixture placement makes.
Two lights with similar specifications can produce very different results depending on where they’re installed and how they’re aimed.
We’ve found that the angle of the light is often just as important as the fixture itself.
Take an exterior brick wall, for example. The lighting may need to bring out the texture of the brick without creating bright spots that draw attention away from the architecture.
A tree with a wide canopy presents another challenge. We may need to distribute the light across several branches instead of concentrating it in one place.
We also consider the color of the light.
For most residential landscape lighting, we recommend warmer light because it generally looks better against brick, natural stone, wood, and plants. Very cool white lighting can make those same materials look harsh.
The exact fixture and color temperature still depend on the property, but we have a good idea of what works after years of designing these systems.
We’re also particular about where the fixtures are placed during the day.
If you’ve invested in beautiful landscaping, you probably don’t want a row of large fixtures sticking out of the flower beds.
We position equipment as discreetly as practical while still getting the lighting effect we’re after.
Sometimes that means moving a fixture a little farther away or choosing another mounting option. Small decisions like that can make a noticeable difference in the finished installation.
We Handle the Electrical Work, Too
One advantage of working with our company is that we’re both lighting designers and electrical contractors.
We don’t have to design a system and then turn it over to an unrelated crew to figure out the installation. Our team handles the electrical work along with the lighting.
That matters on properties where the wiring has to run through established landscaping or around existing improvements.
Homeowners may have underground irrigation, stone walkways, drainage equipment, and other features that need to be considered.
We look at those conditions before deciding how to run the wiring.
We also pay attention to the connections and equipment used outdoors. Houston gets plenty of rain, and the ground can stay wet for extended periods. Landscape lighting equipment needs to be suitable for those conditions.
Our electricians handle the wiring and connections according to the requirements of the system.
And we know homeowners don’t want their yard torn up.
Patricia Hammond mentioned something in her customer review that we always appreciate hearing. After we installed her outdoor lighting, she said she couldn’t tell where the underground electrical work had been done.
That’s the kind of result we aim for. We want the lighting to be noticeable at night, not the evidence of the installation during the day.
Sometimes We’re Called in to Fix Lighting That’s Already There
We do quite a bit of work on existing landscape lighting.
A homeowner may have a system that was installed years ago and needs attention. Several fixtures have stopped working, the lights aren’t as bright as they used to be, or the landscaping has grown around the equipment.
We’ve also seen systems where the original placement wasn’t very effective.
Trees get bigger. Shrubs fill in. Flower beds change. A light that worked well when a tree was young may be pointing into a mass of branches a few years later.
We’ll inspect the existing system and see what’s worth keeping.
Sometimes the problem is electrical and the equipment needs repair. Other times, the fixtures still work but need to be moved or replaced to improve the lighting.
Older systems may also benefit from updated LED fixtures.
We don’t automatically recommend replacing everything. If the existing equipment is in good condition and can be used in the updated design, we’ll consider that.
There are also situations where a new installation makes more sense, particularly when the old system has widespread wiring problems or fixtures that are no longer suitable for the property.
We’ll explain what we find and what we’d recommend doing about it.
Our Customers Have Had Some Interesting Lighting Projects
We’ve designed outdoor lighting for properties that required more than a typical front yard installation.
One customer, Jason Norwood, hired us to develop lighting for a large high-rise terrace. The space had trees and a 50-foot wall, but there were also building restrictions that affected what could be installed.
We had to work within those restrictions while developing the lighting design. Jason later shared a positive review of the finished project and our installation work.
It’s a good example of why we don’t approach every property with the same lighting plan.
Another customer, Olga Kramar, had us install lighting in both her front and back yards. She commented on how the design brought attention to features she hadn’t considered and how much she enjoyed the lighting when looking outside from inside her home.
We like hearing that because the views from inside the house are something we consider when designing landscape lighting.
Our customers also comment on the installation crews themselves.
They notice when our electricians arrive prepared, take care around the property, and leave the work area in good condition.
We’ve been serving Houston homeowners for more than 40 years, and many customers have called us again when they needed additional lighting or electrical work.
We appreciate that. A homeowner who brings us back for another project is giving us a pretty good indication of how they felt about the first one.
What Happens When You Call Us About Landscape Lighting?
We’ll start by talking about your property and what you’re interested in having done.
You may already know that you want lighting in several large trees or around the front of the house. Or you might just know that your yard is too dark and you’d like it to look better in the evenings.
Either way, we can take it from there.
We’ll look at the property and discuss the features you’d like to bring out. We’ll also consider the existing electrical equipment, landscaping, and any outdoor areas that need lighting for everyday use.
Then we’ll develop our recommendations.
We may suggest a combination of architectural lighting, tree lighting, and smaller fixtures around selected landscape features. Another property might only need a few carefully placed lights to get the result the homeowner wants.
We’ll explain the design and the installation work involved before moving ahead.
Once the equipment is installed, we check the lighting and make adjustments to the fixture positions and aiming as needed.
There can be a surprising amount of fine-tuning involved in getting outdoor lighting to look right.
We want to see how the light actually falls on the house, trees, and landscaping. If a fixture needs to be adjusted, we address it.
Afterward, we’re available for maintenance, repairs, and changes as the property develops.
Frequently Asked Questions About Our Landscape Lighting Services
Can you install lighting in large oak trees?
Yes. We design and install lighting for large trees, including live oaks with broad canopies. Depending on the design, we may use ground-mounted fixtures, tree-mounted lighting, or a combination of both.
Can you improve landscape lighting that another company installed?
Yes. We work on existing lighting systems, including installations completed by other contractors. We’ll inspect the equipment and recommend repairs, fixture replacements, or changes to the lighting layout.
Do you install lighting around pools and outdoor kitchens?
Yes. We design lighting for patios, pools, outdoor kitchens, walkways, and other outdoor living areas. We consider how each space is used and where the fixtures can be positioned to provide comfortable lighting.
Will the installation damage our landscaping?
We plan the work around the existing landscape and take care when installing wiring and fixtures. Some installations require access below the ground or around planting beds, but we work to limit disruption and leave the property in good condition.
Let’s Take a Look at Your Outdoor Lighting
If you’ve been thinking about adding landscape lighting or improving what’s already there, give us a call.
We’ll take a look at the house, the trees, and the outdoor areas you’d like to illuminate. We can explain what we’d recommend and how we’d approach the installation.
We’ve been designing and installing lighting for Houston homes for decades, and we’d be happy to discuss your property.
Call Illuminations Lighting Design at 713-863-1133 to schedule a landscape lighting consultation.
