How to Light a Room

Nothing sets the mood of a room like lighting.  Bright light can bring an area into focus, while softer light can cause other areas to recede.  Back lighting and shadowing can add depth, texture and interest; spotlighting can make your interesting art piece stand out.  A well lit home or office has just the right mix of the four types of lighting, Ambient, Task, Decorative, and Accent. 

Ambient Light provides general background light and is most important for overall definition.  It is a gentle, indirect fill light that softens contrasts between brightly lit task locales and the surrounding area. Ambient light creates a shadowless environment, like an overcast day. For ambient light, the source is shielded from direct view and it is desirable to have your major ambient light source on a dimmer. The Tronchi Sconce by Luzifer is a great source of ambient light and adds style to your space as well.  A floor lamp can also provide ambient light. The Ogusdesign Floor Lamp adds an soft ambient light and doubles as a work of art .  Table lamps with translucent lamp shades or created with translucent materiel's, cast soft light in a room. Try Matt Gagnon's Acrylic Lamp.

 

Task Lights illuminate work spaces.  Task lighting may be the most overlooked, yet most important, type of lighting application in our homes and work places. Good task lighting prevents headaches, makes cooking more enjoyable, increases safety, and allows better concentration. To avoid shadowing or glare, try to locate the light between your head and the work surface.  Task lighting should always be used with proper ambient light. Having a bright desk lamp in a dark office will only add to your eye strain every time you look up from your desk. Task lighting should be at least double normal ambient light. For task lighting with table lamps, experts recommend using opaque shades to concentrate and direct the light rather than translucent fabric shades which are more decorative. Task-perfect table lamps are: Soiree by Lights Up! and Pablo's Brazo Table Lamp. The Small Pucci Wall Lamp by dform makes a fine bedside reading light.  Pendant Lights, such as Legna Pendant Lamp by Jefdesigns, should be hung about 23 inches above the dining room table to insure your guests visual comfort while seated. 

Accent Lights provide direct illumination to highlight objects in a room.  Examples of accent lights are recessed cans, track lights, or more contemporary, double-wire halogen bridge fixtures.  Paintings and sculptures, flower arrangements and tabletops can be dramatically accented with this type of lighting.  Accent lights need to be used with other types of light so the lighted object isn’t the only thing seen in the room. To be dramatic, accent lighting should be at least three times as intense as the surrounding area. Bel'occhio Table Lamp by Pablo can spotlight your favorite houseplant or sculpture and also provide some ambient light.

Decorative Lights should serve little purpose other than to look pretty.  They are best used to add sparkle to a room, not to light an entire space.  Decorative lights in combination with other room accessories such as your artwork and window dressings, should emit the overall feel and style of your home.  A great example of a decorative light is the Anemone Lightbox by Jefdeisgns.  The Table Lamp by Ogusdesign is also a great piece of art that will add the contemporary feel to your home.

Comments

[raul fajh]

Hello! first at all congratulations for this web page is awesome keep working in that way!
TO begin Iam a 19 years old guy i really like design specially modernist, i think that i have good ideas but i dont know how to apply it! anyway i wanna know how can i light a small room and with only white color in all the stuff and when i say stuff is forniture doors, etc.. and i wanna make some kind of japanese modernist lighting and decoration i hope that u can give me some suggestions.
For your help thks alot!

[crystal]

I love this website its great very detailed. You forgot to add one more type of lighting and that is Kenetic Lighting that plays a big role in exteriors and interiors because kinetic lighting depending on how its place along with the rest of the lighting can draw your attention faster because of its constant flickering. It just tends to stand out more. Thats just my opinion but I just wanted to add kinetic lighting as the fifth type of lighting