If you’re lighting your patio with two old camping lanterns, you got here just in time.
We have a few better ideas.
What are the latest landscape lighting ideas for Florida? Control it all with a tap on your phone. Sleek contemporary fixtures. Astronomic timers that nerds love. Linear lighting. “Dark sky” lighting that’s friendly to neighbors and the environment. Glowing floaty orbs for your pool or pond. Boss Alexa around in a whole new way.
Let’s learn more about modern outdoor lighting, including:
1. Control Lighting by Zone from Your Phone
The latest Florida landscape lighting ideas highlight convenience.
Group your outdoor lighting into different zones, illuminating your front yard, backyard, and patio independently. Then, turn them on or off individually with an app on your smart phone.
Why would you want to do this? Do you have a couple hours to hear all the reasons? No? We’ll highlight a few:
- Maybe you want to turn on soft lights along your front walkway and driveway to make it safe and inviting for guests arriving after sunset.
- Click on front yard accent lighting highlighting your elegant palm trees, cool architectural features and impressive garden beds to boost your curb appeal.
- You’re heading out back to relax for the evening and want to illuminate just your seating and pool areas.
- You’ll be arriving home late and want to turn on your garage and driveway lighting.
- You’re an early riser and want to turn on soft pathway lighting before you head out for your morning run or to walk the dog.
- It’s the holidays and you want to add sparkle to the neighborhood by turning on front yard holiday lights.
Looking out for baby sea turtles? It’s easy now. Activate amber, turtle-friendly lighting as needed in your coastal backyard and control it separately from the rest of your Sarasota landscape lighting.
Special lighting is required along Florida coastal areas during sea turtle nesting season May through October to prevent bright lighting from disorientating baby sea turtles headed for the ocean.
Baby sea turtles use the moon's reflection to find the ocean. Artificial, bright white lights lure them off course inland.
Regulations require that outdoor lights be low to the ground, shielded to hide the bulb, and emit amber, red, or orange light, which is less visible to turtles than white or blue light.
Helping the baby turtles is easy now — use your phone to
switch your beach-facing lights to amber while leaving the rest of your landscape lighting white.
2. Contemporary Fixtures for Modern Outdoor Lighting
Sleek, modern lighting fixtures are top homeowner choices now, and look great with the contemporary aesthetic popular in Sarasota.
Ditch the old mushroom shapes for your pathway lighting designs and opt for sleek black L-shaped fixtures that are as much outdoor art as they are holders for your lights.
Look for matte black, brushed metal, or geometric-shaped fixtures that complement contemporary architecture.
Here at Tropical Gardens, we love the Brilliance brand and FX Luminaire, both medium-priced brands that offer great quality. Plus, Brilliance offers a lifetime warranty on some of its fixtures.
3. Astronomic Timers for Your Inner Nerd
Any science geeks out there? You’ll love astronomic timers that
automatically control your Sarasota landscape lighting based on daily, location-specific sunrise and sunset times.
They automatically update for seasonal changes and Daylight Savings Time.
Forget photocells. They’re so yesterday. These timers use a built-in astronomical algorithm to determine dusk and dawn, removing the need for external, often faulty, photocells.
Just point to your location on a map via the app, bypassing the need to enter your zip code or coordinates.
Nerd alert.
4. Change Lighting Colors with Bluetooth Technology
This isn’t perfect yet based on our first attempts, but the potential is pretty cool as the tech improves.
Bluetooth-enabled landscape lighting allows for wireless, smartphone-based control of color, brightness and scheduling, typically within a 30-foot range.
Choose from millions of colors and adjust the brightness from 1 percent to 100 percent.
Instantly set the mood to suit the vibe: Fun patio party? Romantic candlelight dinner beneath the bistro lights? Family fire pit fun? Just you and a pint of Ben & Jerry’s?
Oh, the possibilities…
- Cast a blue glow on your water features.
- Color-changing lights let you easily celebrate holidays without putting up temporary decorations. Create a spooky Halloween vibe with orange and purple lights. Add patriotic red, white and blue lighting to your July Fourth bash.
- Use subtly different hues in different areas of your Sarasota landscaping to suggest a variety of outdoor rooms.
Or go minimalist with your lighting, which brings us to…
5. Sustainability and "Dark Sky" Compliance
There’s a lot of talk these days about reducing light pollution and energy consumption.
"Dark Sky" compliant outdoor lighting fixtures use shields to direct light only where it’s needed, down toward your pathways, patio, and landscape, reducing upward spillover to protect wildlife and the night sky.
It helps you be a good neighbor and preserve the beauty of the night sky.
Choosing warm color temperatures is part of the strategy, too, as it’s less disruptive to wildlife and human sleep patterns. And lights should be aimed carefully to illuminate the target, not the space around it.
6. Linear Lighting
Long lights are in for modern outdoor lighting, a cool mix of function and style.
Linear lights work great along pathways and stairways. They can outline the edges of your landscape giving it a sleek, contemporary look. Linear lights also elongate your space, which is good for small and narrow areas.
Linear lights can run along the bottom of each step on stairways for safety.
Sleek and functional, they can fit almost anywhere, helping with a host of outdoor lighting solutions.
7. Alexa, Please Set the Mood
That’s right. If Alexa has been slacking lately and not pulling her weight, get her in on your Sarasota landscape lighting controls.
Smart transformers and apps now allow voice commands via Alexa/Google.
“Alexa, please make the patio lighting romantic so my partner will put down their phone and pay attention to me.”
8. Let It Glow
Cool new materials absorb sunlight then glow at night. Your driveway concrete can glow. Or have glowing stones embedded in your path to the pergola for an enchanted magical vibe.
9. Or, Let It Float
Illuminated orbs can bob around in your pond or pool.
These floating LED globes add soft, modern landscape lighting
to pools, ponds, and water features. They’re more decorative than functional, emitting a soft, diffused glow.
The sealed waterproof spheres have LED lights inside and can often change color or brightness.
Scatter multiple orbs in the pool for a floating galaxy vibe. Combine them with rocks, plants, and waterfalls in your pond. Use them to create a calm, spa-like glow.
10. Biophilic Landscape Lighting
If you’re learning a new word right now, you’re welcome.
This modern landscape lighting design approach mimics natural light patterns, shadows and color temperatures to help connect you to nature, easing stress and boosting relaxation.
Lighting replicates leaf-patterned shadows, flickering firelight, sunlight filtering through the trees or moonlight shining down from above.
Your Sarasota landscape lighting can change color temperature from cool white during the day to warm, amber tones at night.
Ready for Expert Outdoor Lighting Services in Sarasota? Talk to Us
You can always just light a few candles for old-school ambience. Nothing wrong with that.
But modern outdoor lighting options definitely help you boost your outdoor game.
Set the mood with color. Help baby turtles. Update your path lighting with sleek new fixtures even the pizza delivery guy will notice.
Be a bit lazy and control all your outdoor lighting like a lounging mastermind.
Modern outdoor lighting keeps you safe, makes your outdoor living luxurious and festive and extends your precious outdoor time as late into the night as you can stay awake.
Partner with outdoor lighting services in Sarasota who really know their stuff. Let’s get started.
Give us a call or fill out our form today! Our team of Sarasota designers will help you create the perfect wow-worthy outdoor lighting. Sunset can’t come fast enough.
