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 Fine paintings are used as ornate decorations in custom homes and in offices. This is not surprising when you stop to realize has been with in one form or fashion for at least 40,000 years. Light in a paintings itself contributes to the tone of the work by creating a sense of depth through the interplay of light and shadows. Lighting for paintings should not cast shadows, however, but rather must discover and magnify the luminosity of the scene and animate the action between objects and characters. This method of lighting paintings is as old as Lascaux, where firelight was used to make the seemingly crude stick figures of hunters and animals suddenly spring to life with the illusion of three dimensional substance and physical movement.
To create this sense of vivid life and realism, lighting for paintings must be sourced from special types of fixtures and controlled in such a manner that enhances the work without damaging the piece or limiting the aesthetic.
Only filtered light can be used for safely lighting paintings.
Oils and canvases will degrade if exposed to UV light. Infrared light is not as damaging as ultraviolet light, but it nevertheless produces large quantities of heat that will dry out paint and crack the canvas. Because sunlight consists of both UV and IR radiation, it must never be used to light paintings, because it will quickly destroy them in a short period of time. Sunlight is much too bright to light a painting because it overpowers the combination of shadows and light in the painting and flattens the perspective of the image.
It is therefore necessary to use a filtered artificial light source that removes UV and IR rays from the light beam.
Use a light source with a high color rendering index (CRI).
Even though artificial light is much safer than sunlight to use as lighting for paintings, sunlight’s ability to render color is unmatched because sunlight is a perfect blend of all natural colors of the spectrum. Nevertheless, it is simply out of the question as a source of art lighting for paintings, so you have to use a close approximation to sunlight to bring out the color in your artwork.
To date, the best light of this type is a halogen bulb. These bulbs emit an intense, white light that renders color at levels near that of sunlight. Halogen bulbs are found in recessed ceiling fixtures that shine light down on artwork. They are also used in art lighting projectors, which also install in the ceiling.
When utilized for artwork lighting, recessed lights must be filtered. All art lighting projectors, because they are intended only for art lighting, are manufactured with filters in them.
Lighting for paintings must be adjustable and dimmable.
Paintings must be illuminated from the correct angle of incidence to avoid spill light shining past the boundaries of the frame and to avoid glare than can reflect off the canvas back into the eye. Picture lights are hard to adjust like this and are generally not recommended for this reason. Also, they can burn very hot at times and are extremely difficult to filter, making them unsafe as well.
Recessed lights and projectors are much better sources of illumination because they allow the decorator to change the direction of the light at will. Some recessed fixtures can be adjusted in this manner more easily than others, so it is important to make certain before ordering them if the models being ordered were made specifically for wall art lighting and fine art paintings.
Projectors offer an even greater range of adjustment because they hang suspended from the ceiling and can be positioned anywhere along a three-dimensional access. Some projectors are easier to adjust than others. It is best to talk to an art lighting specialist who can recommend the very best model suited to a particular home, office, or museum application.
Call a professional firm to have your art lights installed.
Lighting simple prints or photographs is something anyone can do with retail picture lights. Lighting a painting is something completely different. It takes commercial grade recessed lighting fixtures and bulbs that can only be obtained by a design firm from the manufacture. It also takes knowledge of art and design to truly create a masterpiece of lighting.
Illuminations Lighting Design has mastered these mini-disciplines and has been lighting art in Houston, Beaumont, Austin, and San Antonio areas for many, many years. Our staff holds licenses in electrical service work and understands the complexity of fine art lighting, home automation and interior design.
Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting, electrical service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters, emergency generators, surge protection systems, phone systems and lighting control systems.
Call toll free 800-863-1184 for a complimentary lighting consultation.Labels: Beaumont Fine Art Lighting, Contour Projector, Fine Art Lighting Equipment, Lighting For Paintings, Painting Lights, Picture Lighting Solutions
 What does home decorative lighting accomplish?
Indoor decorative lighting enhances the interior features of your home without overpowering the general, functional lighting you require for daily life and home security. Within your home’s interior, decorative lights should accentuate key elements of interior design and distinguish works of art and specialty displays with an aura of significance. Interior decorative lighting can also be used to create positive emotions and states of mind by complimenting special activities, celebrations, relaxation, and home entertainment. Lighting controls and dimmers are important elements of interior decorative lighting because they allow for multiple themes and effects to be created with a single group of fixtures.
What should I look for in a home interior lighting designer?
Find a company that knows interior design, first of all. Because the interior of a home contributes so much to the essence of a person’s unique, individual lifestyle, lighting designers should start by assessing the home’s existing interior. The dimensions of any given room and its respective furnishings should be studied to locate patterns of symmetry, pattern, and color. The design and height of the ceiling is also crucial to home decorative lighting because it functions as a dual source of both direct light and indirect light.
Are fine art and display lighting considered decorative lighting?
Yes, but they should be treated as separate elements from the rest of the home interior and be lit with specialty art lights and display lights. Display cases for collectibles and fine art require special fixtures, lenses, and lamping configurations to effectively light the subtleties of fine oil paintings, rare antiques, and special edition collector’s hardbacks. Recessed art lighting fixtures must also have special UV and infrared filters to protect oils and canvases from the harmful effects of invisible light. As a general rule, retail picture lights do a very poor job of dissipating heat and should be avoided. We recommend using either recessed halogen lights with UV filters or a specialty art projector for filtered, adjustable light. Display lights also need to be adjustable in order to balance with general lighting in the room. The best display lights are typically linear light strips with lighting control system that allow light levels to be controlled at will by the homeowner.
What else can decorative lighting be used for?
Home decorative lighting plays a major role in establishing a positive frame of mind. Every home has certain rooms that are used for special tasks, and other areas used specifically for relaxation and entertainment. The den or bedroom is a preferred reading place. The kitchen and adjoining dining area is usually favored for social gatherings and festivities. The bathroom is the mainstay for personal grooming. The home theater is the place for high-tech escape from the mundane drudgery's of society. These are but a few examples of what we mean here by activity-specific locations that create a unique mindset in a person. Every one of these locations is also prime real estate for interior decorative lights. LEDs are excellent home theater lighting and supplemental reading lights, and they use only 20% the electricity as incandescent fixtures. Cabinet and under cabinet lights in kitchens can cast a special glow over the counter top for a cooking demonstration, birthday party, or wedding celebration. Cove lights in living rooms, foyers, and kitchens can shine light up the walls wrap around the edges of the ceiling, replacing dark shadows with ambient fields of radiance.
How many decorative lights do I need?
You don’t need that many actual decorative lighting fixtures if you install a Lutron Grafik Eye system. Lighting control systems allow for the same basic group of decorative home lights to produce multiple lighting levels and special lighting effects. With user friendly wall box dimmers and hand held remotes, you can highlight part of the room, all of the room, or create any mood you wish with selective control of specific fixtures. Pre-programmed themes can also be loaded for one-touch lighting control.
How can I learn more about decorative lighting techniques?
Click here to read more about Houston home improvement remodeling, home electrical generators, advanced electrical installations and lighting design services by Illuminations Lighting and Design.
Where are your main offices?
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Call us today at 713-863-1133, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Advanced Electrical Installations, Home Decorative Lighting, Houston Electrical Contractors, Lighting Designers Houston
 Outdoor lights create a unifying aesthetic between the natural and the man made. Houses, yards, landscape features, trees, indigenous vegetation, patios, gazebos, and gardens can all be made to look like they not only fit together, but belong together. There is a vast multitude of fixture types and lamping options to consider when planning an outdoor garden lighting system, and there is a great deal of design than goes along with the selection of technology in order for the equipment to produce truly impressive results. Understanding a few key elements of design will help you conceptualize the basic steps toward the outcome more easily. It will also help you find the right professional sources for outdoor lights and design services and save you a great deal of time and money in the long run.
Take a less is more approach.
One thing to remember when choosing contemporary outdoor lights is that the lights themselves are not the most important element to the design. While this may sound odd, it really makes a great deal of sense when we consider the simple scientific fact that none of us actually see light itself—we see color. Your outdoor lighting system is intended to showcase the richness of color and form surrounding your home, not showcase itself. A large number of visible fixtures tends to overwhelm the property with obtrusive equipment and could result in complaints from your neighbors if the combined light output is too intense. You will also pay dearly for the overkill when the electric bill comes due.
On the other hand, a professional photometric analysis can show you exactly how much light you need and where. This will tell you in turn what outdoor light fixtures to actually purchase, and give you a general idea of where you should have them installed.
Conceal the fixtures.
In most cases it is not possible to literally conceal a light fixture completely. This is not necessary, anyway. All that is necessary is to conceal the fixtures enough from the viewer’s conscious awareness in order to point their attention to the object(s) being illuminated. This is something of a trick of the eye, as some would say, and often requires a professional consulting firm to help you achieve. Professional landscape lighting firms like Illuminations Lighting and Design have special training in fixture concealment, and they have access to commercial grade fixtures that are often smaller and more efficient than retail grade equipment.
It is fair to say, then, that whereas the actual number of fixtures is not the most important part of outdoor light design, the concealment and proper angle of fixtures certainly is.
Use energy efficient fixtures.
Almost every outdoor lighting concept you can imagine can be created using energy efficient fixtures. Both commercial outdoor lighting and outdoor home architectural lighting often rely heavily upon low voltage accent lights. These lights tend to be very safe to have in the yard around children and pets, and they of course consume far less electricity than line voltage fixtures. LED outdoor lights are also making an explosion in the marketplace, making it possible to decorate with everything from special effects and subtle shades of mood-altering color to bright floodlights for home security, outdoor path lighting or commercial property lighting.
Determine mount by subject illuminated and angle of incident.
Different outdoor lights feature different types of mounts. Some attach to the ground and shine up lighting onto trees, walls, and statuary. Others install in the trees themselves and create something akin to artificial moon light. Still others attach to the roofs of homes and office buildings and keynote important features that make the structure unique and aesthetically appealing.
Get a professional firm to help you.
These basic considerations point to a very important, ultimate consideration, that every homeowner has to make when investing in residential landscape lights. While lighting singular elements of a house, yard, patio, garden, or flower bed may be easy to do using retail grade fixtures and lamps, developing a continuity of themes between the various elements of a landscape and a house, along with saving energy and using fixtures that are built to last for a good number of years, takes a great deal of time and sometimes very sophisticated calculations.
It is also important that you realize that your community probably has, or will have very soon; dark sky laws that strictly regulate the type and level of lighting you can have around your home. Light pollution can be both a nuisance to neighbors and a safety hazard to motorists driving by. Working with a firm like ILD ensures that your equipment meets all energy and dark sky regulatory codes and that it is installed at the ideal angles of incidence to light your home and landscape as intended without violating legal restrictions on the equipment or its use.
Get a free consultation before you make any decisions.
If you live anywhere in Texas and need lighting in Houston, Beaumont, Austin, TX, or San Antonio areas, call Illuminations Lighting and Design before buying anything. We will provide you with a free consultation and a list of recommended outdoor light fixture and lamp types to best showcase the beauty and uniqueness of your property. If you move forward into a business relationship with us, understand that you are working with one of the most respected lighting design services company in the United States with 27 years of experience and expertise in five major service disciplines related to lighting, electrical services, and home automation.
Call us now at 1-800-963-1184 to get started. We are located in Houston but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Independant Residential Electrical Contractor, Landscape Lighting Professional, Landscape Outdoor Lighting, Outdoor Lights
.jpg) Ceiling lights are most effective when they produce multiple layers of light that provide a sense of sourcelessness to both task and decorative lighting types. Ideally, ceiling lighting should minimize the physical appearance of fixtures and create an even distribution of general lighting that maintains at all times appropriate levels of light necessary in whatever environment they are located. With very few exceptions found only in purely decorative, aesthetic applications such as museum or public display lighting, ceiling lighting should disperse illumination with the intent of eliminating all visible pockets of shadows in the room. This is especially true in commercial lighting projects, but it is also very necessary for quality living space in residential settings. Likewise, while bright light is often necessary both in a home and a workspace, ceiling lights should be used that feature specification grade fixture designs and advanced optics and reflectors when appropriate. This optimizes the photometric capabilities of the lamps housed inside the fixtures, and it eliminates glare that can cause discomfort to human eyes. Finally, almost all ceiling lights should compliment function with form by adding a decorative touch to the room.
There are many different ceiling lights from which you can choose that conceal themselves as much as possible above the line of sight. Concealment, as we define it, is actually a matter of degree and never and absolute. No architectural custom lighting in the ceiling is completely invisible if you stare straight up at the ceiling, so it is not necessary to waste time or money in an attempt to go to extremes of concealment. It works much better to find ceiling lights that take a “low profile” position in relation to the normal angles of view that people standing, walking, through the room or sitting in the room normally perceive. In order to correctly determine what types of fixtures you should use, whether they should be low voltage or line voltage in nature, and what number you will actually need really requires the assistance of a trained lighting consultant familiar with the many new technologies now available that can help your home or business save power, look better, and achieve new levels of décor previously unavailable even in purely decorative lighting. Working with professionals also gives you access to US-manufactured, specification grade ceiling lights that will last longer and perform much better than foreign equivalents and retail quality fixtures.
Glare and shadows are the two main enemies that work against you in virtually any interior lighting design, and ceiling lights play a crucial role in the elimination of both. Like we mentioned earlier, there are SOME settings (such as statuary and 3-D abstract art lighting) where shadows are deliberatively generated by lighting specialists in order to create special effects. In most cases, however, the opposite is almost always the rule. Shadows and glare have to be eliminated at all costs. This is where ceiling lights can shine at their brightest, so to speak. Unlike lamps and wall art lights that can often be very focused and intense, many varieties ceiling lights work to create a general “wash” of indirect light that cascades down the walls and over the central areas of work and human traffic. This will eliminate the glare that is often caused by overly relying on singular, bright ceiling lights that shine direct lighting only down onto the room. Because this light resembles a soft, ambient field more than a direct beam of bright luminance, it also dispels shadows more effectively by shining light on all points of the room at once. When objects are “surrounded by light” in this manner, shadows have no place to linger.
After this general field of light has been created in the room, brighter, direct-lighting ceiling fixtures can then be added to selectively shine additional, brighter light on work areas, artwork, aisles, kitchen counters, and special rooms within a home. While commercial and residential lighting are two separate disciplines, ceiling lights used in one discipline are commonly found in the other. Furthermore, installing ceiling lighting fixtures controlled by one or more Lutron wallbox dimmers or lighting control systems can exponentially multiply their effectiveness both functionally and aesthetically in both commercial and residential environments. Light control systems for homes and businesses can use the same set of ceiling lights to create multiple lighting effects and themes. Because there is always a practical element within aesthetic lighting, and some level of aesthetic sense intrinsic within task lighting, you can now adjust the "mix" of these two factors to become your own lighting designers simply by turning up one group of ceiling lights and turning down another. That’s sophistication at its finest and most convenient, and it is available to you now through Lutron distributors like Illuminations Lighting and Design to businesses and residents throughout Houston and Greater Texas.
Illuminations Lighting Design is the only “One Stop” destination for lighting design services, engineering, landscape lighting services and installation in the state of Texas, and remains unrivaled by any lighting firm in the United States for lighting that is art. As homes grow larger and needs become more complex, having a single resource provides home owners with peace of mind. This translates into a smoother process, reduced costs and a better product.
Like fine wine, Illuminations has matured and become a classic for those clients with a discriminating palate for comfort, mood and ambiance. Click here or call 1-800-863-1184 for an free consultation now.Labels: Architectural Lighting Houston Texas, Ceiling Lighting, Decorative Ceiling Lighting, Low Voltage Lighting, Recessed Accent Fixtures
 When we talk about home lighting systems, we are actually referring to a group of Lutron products that have the ability to automate the lighting on a whole-house level. Home lighting systems differ from home lighting controls in this manner, because one may conceivably use lighting controls in only a single room, and not the entirety of the house per se. Such a strategy is rare however, in residential settings, because today’s homeowner tends to expect a great deal more from his or her residence than the homeowner of 30 years ago. Most clients of Lutron vendors like Illuminations Lighting and Design choose to implement a comprehensive home lighting system that will give them one-touch control of everything both within and around the house. Depending on the size and age of the house, there are three Lutron home lighting system options available to clients throughout Houston and Greater Texas.
HomeWorks Lighting Controls
Lutron HomeWorks® is a popular home lighting system that is very well-known and that has witness a great deal of success over the past few years. Lutron HomeWorks features conditional logic that allows the home lighting system to be programmed for intuitive behavior. For example, the HomeWorks home lighting system can sense when it is beginning to get dark outside and turn on the architectural and landscape lights automatically. Most people report that they more secure after we install their HomeWorks system, as the lights are still on when they leave for work in the morning and have already come on by themselves when they return home at night.
This level of precision and comfort is made possible by a combination of programming and light sensitive sensors that enable the home lighting system to “sense” changes in external lighting. Interior lights, meanwhile, can be preset using Lutron GRAFIK Eye or Spacer System controls to come on at the push of a button. These effects can be further augmented by integrating controls with various other aspects of home automation, including whole house audio and home theater integration.
RadioRA® Lutron Controls
Unfortunately, many older homes cannot be fitted with the latest home automation systems due to the fact that older wiring will have to be replaced completely for newer home automation and lighting control technology to work. For these houses, ILD recommends Lutron’s RadioRA home lighting system. This system requires no new wiring for installation, and proves ideal for older historic homes and larger homes built in the late 70’s, 80’s, and early 90’s.
The RadioRa has been engineered to seamlessly integrate with any floor plan and unobtrusively blend into interior structures and architecture. RadioRA home lighting systems uses wireless, RF radio signals instead of wires when communicating with its various components. They can be configured to control a portion of the home recessed lighting fixtures, specific groupings of fixtures, or the entire indoor and outdoor lighting system within and around the house. RadioRA also remotely controls lighting from your car visor with the push of a button, and it can be used to manipulate lighting around the deck or pool outside via hand-held remotes. Aficionados of eclectic home-based entertainment and cinema particularly value this benefit, as it enables them to a party at home that is better than nightlife any night of the week.
AuroRa® Lighting Dimmers
This is Lutron's latest and greatest innovation in home lighting systems. It expands the previous wireless technology of the RadioRA into new arenas of comfort, intuitive control, and advanced home automation. With the AuroRa system, you can press a button and create a safe path of light to, through and around the home with wireless control of 5 areas of outdoor lighting. One of the greatest advantages AuroRa offers the eclectic homeowner is pre-programmed capability. The system literally works straight out of the Lutron factory box.
The AuroRa system truly takes a whole house approach to lighting, unifying the functionality of indoor and outdoor lighting into an intuitive, user friendly command interface. This home lighting system can do everything from raise and lower outdoor lighting at dawn and twilight, turn off exterior lights at midnight, activate preset landscaping themes for weddings, birthday parties, and family gatherings, and light a path to the front door when you get home late at night.
Inside the house, the AuroRa home lighting system can open and close shades and control such elements as light pollution and energy conservation, sequence different lighting scenes automatically, and turn on any light or group of lights inside the home or home theater instantly with the push of a button. Every activity from dining, to movie watching, to games and social interaction can have its own specific, supportive lighting theme for optimal mood stimulation and mental focus.
Illuminations Lighting is Your Texas Lutron Source
The added value we can offer any home automation or lighting systems client is determination of exactly which system will best fit their needs, and which components and programming features need to be used to build that system. Click here to learn more about our multi-specialization in electrical services, lighting design, and home automation, and call 1-800-864-1133 for a free consultation today.Labels: AMX Lighting Control Systems, Home Automation Lighting Systems, Lutron Dimmer Switches, Lutron Electronics, Lutron Homeworks Lighting Controls
 Lutron manufactures two major lines of home lighting controls designed to control lighting at the individual room level. Lutron also engineers whole house lighting control systems, which we will deal with in a separate article on our site. Today’s article focuses only on the two most prominent lighting controls for homes: the Spacer System home light control designed for multiple lighting scene selection, and the GRAFIK Eye preset home light control. Lutron home light control is intended to reflect personal ideals, lifestyle habits, and home entertainment activities, and they are intended to seamlessly integrate into the interior architecture of even the most custom homes.
Spacer System
The Spacer System provides the advantage of home lighting control through an infrared remote unit that manipulates several lighting circuits linked in tandem by a wireless master controller. Because it takes a “less is more” approach to equipment in general, it represents an excellent retrofit option for homeowners on a budget, because Spacer System home lighting control dimmers can replace existing dimmers and communicate via the wireless master controller.
Spacer System dimmers can control the lighting levels of any and all fixtures in the room, including ceiling lights, accent lights, table lights, and floor lamps. You can create any particular scene appropriate to the master bedroom, den, home entertainment center, or master bath, and then save them in your controller. The system will store up to five lighting scenes per room, providing one-touch access to different levels of task lighting for activities, accent lighting for ambiance, or a subtle touch of both.
GRAFIK EYE
The Lutron GRAFIK Eye home light control system is designed to allow instant switchover to any number of preset lighting scenes. It is based on more advanced technology than the Spacer System ,and it is generally recommended for larger, custom houses and lighting control systems integrated with home automation networks, whole house audio, home security, and high-end home theaters. It also continues to gain momentum in the commercial lighting world, where it is becoming a polar source of boardroom lighting and hospitality lighting applications.
When an authorized Lutron Dealer such as ILD configures your GRAFIK Eye or Homeworks system, we subdivide the lighting circuits in the room to create “lighting zones.” This allows your home lighting control system to then turn certain lights on at full power and leave other lights only partially powered on, or not powered on at all. This variation in lighting intensity is the key to creating subtle and complex lighting effects and themes within a room. The intention in each case is to match areas of brightness and shadows to the pace and nature of activities transpiring in that room. This not works to facilitate the activity on a functional level, but it also helps create an emotional tone congruent to the activity itself.
To switch to a different lighting theme, simply press a button on your infrared remote, and your home automation control system will automatically go to the next scene. The GRAFIK Eye can also be programmed to do this automatically, manipulating both indoor and outdoor lights at various times of the day, evening, or night. You can automate it to turn lights on and off at different times of the evening, such as sun down or just after dark. This high level of control is beneficial to both home entertainment and home energy savings. Home Theater users rely on GRAFIK Eye home dimming controls to lower the shades and dim the lights when movie time rolls around. People who like to host parties find that varying the lights can create everything from relaxing ambience to intensity for games and lively conversation. To change the lighting theme, simply press a button on your infrared remote.
Call a Specialist to Help You Decide!
While these controls are designed for maximum user friendliness, it takes an authorized Lutron reseller like Illuminations Lighting Design to correctly design, install, and configure either system in today’s sophisticated residential space. Call 1-800-863-1184 for a free estimate on either one of these fantastic room-based home lighting control systems, and let one of our lighting control experts develop and install a system ideally tailored to your personal home, lifestyle, needs, and desires.
Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting, electrical service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters, emergency generators, surge protection systems, phone systems and lighting control systems.
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Call us today at 800-863-1184, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Electrical contractor Houston Texas, Home Automation Lighting Systems, Home Lighting Controls, Lutron Dimmer Switches, Vantage lighting controls
 Imagine having your landscape lights slowly fade when the sun comes up as your bathroom lights power on with a soft, gentle glow to greet you as you rise. As you prepare for work, the lights in your bedroom and kitchen come at increasingly higher levels, helping you get into gear for a morning in traffic and a day in the office. While you read the paper over morning coffee, you can touch a remote and raise the shades to let the sunlight in. When you leave, simply turn everything off with a single button, and after a hard day’s work, turn them back with a visor control as you pull into your driveway.
Regardless of the time, day or night, Lutron HomeWorks gives you total control and optimal convenience in programmed, user-friendly task, decorative, and security lighting control.
Consider the benefits that this lighting control system can offer to your home, and how it will enrich your lifestyle by making your interior and exterior lighting systems a virtual extension of your thoughts, will, and desire. Illuminations Lighting and Design can equip you with this skillful blend of user friendly interface and state of the art software with a Lutron HomeWorks lighting control system. Built upon a foundation of 40 years in lighting control innovation, Lutron HomeWorks represents a true home automation lighting solution that is fully compatible with home security systems and home entertainment audio/visual devices. Not only will HomeWorks give you more freedom and choice when it comes to manipulating lighting effects and levels, but it also filters out externally induced voltage variance in order to stabilize lighting levels at the desired settings. This in turn helps to buffer your home’s electrical systems from intermittent power spikes and better protects your equipment from power spikes.
The strength of Lutron HomeWorks lies in three key elements integral to the system control software. These key elements handle the intuitive, timing, and personalized control elements of your lighting control system. Conditional logic allows the HomeWorks lighting control system the ability to behave intuitively, activating certain features of your program only after specific conditions have been fulfilled. Exterior low voltage lighting, for example, will only come on when system sensors determine it is dark. Different lights can be set to turn on at the push of a single button, indicating that it is time for lunch and dinner. They can even add music to the lighting theme to set the mood for guests! This blend of user control and automated functionality is enabled by flexible programming at the keypad control level and an astronomical clock that knows when sunrise and sunset will occur on any given day in your particular location. This tells the system to when to turn outdoor garden lights on at specific times before or after dark, and to turn them off again at a certain point at or around daybreak. Most clients feel this provides them with an additional layer of security lighting, because the lights can be set to turn themselves on before a person drives home after dark in the evening, or to come on just before sunrise when the homeowner goes outside to water the plants, work in the garden, or sweep the patio.
In spite of the high-end lighting technology that constitutes a HomeWorks control system, ILD makes the interface so user friendly that even children and guests can use the system. Lutron keypads can be engraved with labels that allow you to quickly remember, giving you quick, one-touch access to a 2-way command system that causes lights to respond in a fraction of a second. Because today’s eclectic homeowner centers so many of his or her activities in and around the home, Lutron HomeWorks is engineered on a custom, per client basis for multi-functionality and maximum flexibility. Lutron Home works controls are aesthetically pleasing and designed to blend into a multiplicity of decorative themes and interior designs. With simple commands to low profile wall units and remotes, you can change the brightness and tone of everything from art lighting in the living room to task lighting in the kitchen. When movie time comes, a single command can lower your projector screen, dim the lights in your home theater, and close the shades for an evening at home that rivals the spectacle of public theater.
ILD is a reputable, established, licensed Lutron installation vendor who will customize your Lutron HomeWorks system to the interior architecture of your house and the core activities of your personal lifestyle. It doesn’t matter either if your home is a newly planned dwelling pending construction, or an older, historical home with character and established personality of its own. With Lutron RF HomeServe technology, even homes with older wiring designs can be retrofitted with wireless Lutron Radio Ra technology that controls everything from chandeliers, floor lights, desk lamps, bathroom lights, and utility lights over washroom and work areas.
Click here to read more about ILD’s lighting control and home automation services, and call us Illuminations Lighting Design now for a free consultation and proposal of custom Lutron HomeWorks system tailor made for your personal lifestyle. Feel free to call 800-863-1184 for a lighting control specialist!Labels: Lutron Dimmer Switches, Lutron Electronics, Lutron Homeworks Lighting Controls
 Truly effective Texas electrical service requires much more than simple wiring and electricity. Today’s houses and buildings are so much more sophisticated than they were in the past; featuring more elaborate floor plans, more space consolidation, automated wiring and more custom interior architecture.
When you find yourself facing a basic or minor electrical problem, more than likely you would want to work with a local company in your area. It is usually more cost effective to go with someone within your own community who can be there on the same day or the day after, and who can show you a great deal of personal attention.
However, more extensive and complex services like whole house surge suppression, power backup, new home wiring and electrical emergency generator installation, often demand that small, local Texas electrical service companies call upon Houston-based Illuminations Lighting and Design to add their expertise, personnel, and training in a team work capacity to deliver a comprehensive solution to the eclectic Texas homeowner.
More advanced electrical service work that may not be available in your area can be obtained for larger projects by contacting ILD directly. The following represents just a few of the major project services we offer to large estates and custom homes throughout the Houston area and Texas Hill Country.
Electrical Home Remodeling
Surge Suppressors, Backup Power, and Electrical Generators
Your electrical service could be interrupted by any number of causes, chief among which are severe weather conditions unique to both Central Texas and the Texas Gulf Coast Region.
All along the Texas Coast, Houston, Beaumont, Galveston County are hit every year by tropical storms. At other times, we are hit by full force hurricanes. Residents of Austin, Texas, San Antonio, Brenham, TX, La Grange, Columbus, and Bastrop, Texas at times get struck by violent thunderstorms and hail, and many times face the threat of tornadoes.
Every house in Texas should be protected by multiple ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI).
A GFCI is a vital safety component that protects children and pets in much the same way that a circuit breaker or fuse protects the circuit panel. If the wire becomes frayed or gets wet, this can cause the power to suddenly spike. When a spike occurs, the GFCI immediately senses the upsurge and shuts down the circuit, thus minimizing the treat of electrocution.
Any time the power goes out completely in a neighborhood or small town in Texas, electrical service may not be immediately available due to inclement weather. In such an instance, having a commercial grade, dependable generator for emergency power can keep you in touch with the world and maintain the basic power requirements of your home until the power is restored.
Custom homeowners in Texas should strongly consider contacting a specialty electrical service firm like ILD to install a whole house surge suppression system. This will safeguard their investment in their home lighting systems and controls. Extremely remote locations often experience spikes in electrical service that can blow out circuits and electronic equipment in the home.
Again, this service proves to be of immense benefits to both Gulf Coast clients and Hill Country Clients alike. Everything from hurricanes and tropical storms to tornadoes and thunderstorms with hail can strike down power lines and send surges of high voltage straight into homes. By protecting your house with surge suppression, you can weather the storm without having to replace entire systems when the rains clear.
Advanced Electrical Services: Custom Home Wiring, Lighting Control, and Home Automation
Even the best Texas electrical service professionals often require training in skill sets beyond the boundaries of standard electrical work. Today’s home theater systems, whole house audio systems, and advanced home security controls require advanced knowledge of computers, security controls, lighting control software, and home theater components that can only be gained through cross training and partnerships with specialists who are familiar with these disciplines.
This is where Illuminations Lighting outshines its competition in advanced electrical services to Texas homeowners with eclectic tastes and highly customized home architecture. Our electric service professionals cross train and partner with our lighting control and home automation services, combining two divisions into one solid team when exceptional delivery power is required in the field.
Regardless of whether you need a new home theater, a Vantage control software upgrade, Lutron wallbox dimmers, or a Radio RA wireless lighting control system, you can depend Texas electrical service technicians and lighting design experts to lay the strongest possible foundation of service and functionality for any home networking, entertainment, or command control objectives your preference and lifestyle requires.
Illuminations Lighting and Design is a full-service vendor of Texas electrical service work, commercial and home lighting design, fine art lighting and lighting control and automation systems. Most of our electrical service work is concentrated in the area between Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. Occasionally we go as far north as Dallas and Fort Worth for major projects, and we work nationwide as a lighting design and electrical service contractor for high-end lighting projects at resorts, hotels, country clubs, and exclusive restaurants.
Call us today for a free consultation at 1-800-863-1184. Consultants are standing by to assist your with any custom project in Texas.Labels: Austin Texas Lighting, Fine art lighting, Home Automation Specialists, Home Theater Design, Professional Landscape Lighting, Texas Electrical Contractors
 Wallbox dimmers are the basic building blocks of modern day light controls.
Wallbox dimmers by Lutron can be installed to replace standard light switches in every room of the house. This will place total control of lighting and power levels directly into the hands of the individual, and it will allow the homeowner to immediately begin saving money on electrical costs without having to replace every light in the home. This is important, because every homeowner only has two choices: retrofit the lights themselves with led or fluorescent fixtures now, or install wallbox dimmers and a lighting control system that will make incandescent lights less expensive to use and generate a return on investment that can be reinvested in new lighting fixtures when the new ban on incandescent lighting takes effect in 2010.
With the growing popularity of fluorescent lights as energy saving alternatives to incandescents, many people will opt to take the easy path of simply replacing their light bulbs rather than first considering the advantages of a Lutron wall box or Lutron Radio Ra light dimmers can offer them as the first step toward a whole new level of light. ILD encourages you to consider these options before spending money on new bulbs. It is important to realize that truly livable and enjoyable home environments depend greatly on aesthetics. While it is an established fact that one 13watt fluorescent bulb will give you the same amount of light as one 60-watt incandescent light, it is also a fact that standard fluorescent recessed lights are not compatible with dimmer switches or low voltage wallbox dimmer control units. The cause of this incompatibility lies within the design of a fluorescent bulb itself.
A fluorescent bulb requires less energy than an incandescent bulb because a magnetic ballast controls the flow of current that powers the bulb. This ballast allows the bulb to produce more light with less electricity, making it a very cost effective alternative to incandescent. Beyond cost benefits, though, fluorescent bulbs are limited in a number of ways. As we have stated, standard ballast technology is incompatible with wall box dimmers and therefore prohibits direct control of lighting levels. This is why fluorescent lights are mostly used in utility rooms and commercial buildings where decorative effects are not needed and a fixed level of functional light is all the facility requires. However, even in some commercial lighting projects, fluorescent lights have their limitations. They are not appropriate for green retrofit options, and they offer little aesthetic to homeowners unless fitted with very expensive dimming ballasts and matching fluorescent dimmers to make them work in tandem with wallbox dimmers.
Fluorescent lights add little or no aesthetic to home lighting design unless they fitted with very expensive color correcting lamps. Again, such exorbitant expenses are better spent on a lighting control system and Lutron wallbox dimmers that can reduce your power bills today now and still be compatible to any new lamps, fixtures, bulbs, or lighting control system software upgrades you invest in over the next two years.
Line voltage dimmers will make incandescent bulbs more energy efficient by performing a very similar function to that of fluorescent ballasts. At the same time, they enable you to turn existing home lights into an aesthetically pleasing lighting control and home automation system that will give you the ability to manually adjust the light to whatever levels he or she desires.
When the ban on incandescent lights becomes effective in 2010, all house lighting fixtures based on incandescent technology must be replaced with either LED and hybrid fluorescent equivalents. By that time, hybrid technology will probably have developed to a point that any Lutron wallbox dimmer can easily manipulate whatever type of light bulb retrofit you install in your home. However, the timing of multiple investments should always be considered, especially in today’s recession. Wallbox dimmers installed now will save you money on power both now and in the future. They will also increase the decorative appeal of your home by making it possible to create a more warm, ambient, and entertaining environment for children, relatives, and friends. When you do replace your existing bulbs in the future, you will be adding them to a home that is already optimized for function, aesthetic, and control with a Lutron Grafik Eye lighting control installation by experts.
Why not call a lighting control specialist at ILD to discuss the cost saving benefits of a Lutron wallbox dimmer versus an arbitrary retrofit of all the lights in your house? Get the aesthetic right and the lay the foundation for a whole new type and quality of lighting, and then let alternative technologies catch up with lighting design and control systems for a more robust, user friendly, and multi-dimensional lighting system come New Years Day of 2010.
Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting, electrical service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters, emergency generators, surge protection systems, phone systems and lighting control systems.
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Call us today at 800-863-1184, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Energy Saving Switches, Lutron Dimmer Switches, Lutron Electronics, Lutron lighting controls, Wallbox Lutron Dimmers
 Restaurant bar lighting requires focusing on a number of essential elements that come together to create an effective, appropriate sensibility for this special place within your business. Fixtures used in restaurant bar lighting need to be energy efficient and avoid filling the room with too much light. Also, a number of interior design concerns must also be considered when lighting your restaurant bar. What shape is the bar itself? What is the total square footage of the bar area? What type of clientele does the bar attract, and at what time of day?
Answering these questions first will help you determine an effective strategy for creating a truly sophisticated, unique restaurant bar lighting system that is easy to control and customize to different seasons, occasions, and groups of people. Working with a licensed, professional lighting design and electrical service firm such as ILD also helps you achieve the very best results. Firms such as ours have access not only to the full gamut of traditional lighting fixtures and high-end lighting controls, but also to specialty lighting equipment and LED technology not available on the open retail market.
Lighting Fixtures
Restaurant bar lighting fixtures can range from the simple to the ultra-modern and classically ornate. The interior architecture, design, and overall theme of the restaurant will play a big role in determining what types of fixtures you select. In most cases, restaurant bar lighting fixtures tend to output lower than normal levels of light and tend to be low voltage devices installed with the intention of reducing power costs.
ILD will design you a system that is both practical and decorative at the same time, ranging from contemporary ceiling and recessed lights for high-end facilities, pendant lights and chandeliers for refined environments, and small specialty lamps for cozy, traditional settings.
Practical Concerns
Although the styles of fixtures employed in restaurant bar lighting tend to vary a great deal, the same practical considerations have to be taken into account in virtually every facility. Down lighting is a must for both patrons and staff because it provides the most effective and even source of task light that provides enough light to see without overwhelming the eyes. Incidentally, humans need only minimal amounts of light to move around, so lights over a restaurant bar and surrounding floor space can be very Spartan in their output and still produce optimal results.
Bartenders, however, need to see to make the drinks. In order to avoid disrupting the atmosphere, our designers often install low profile under cabinet strip lights that provide bright task light for mixing drinks and washing dishes. The only light the patrons might notice coming from these fixtures is a gentle radiance that emanates from behind the counter and actually works toward contributing to the mystique environment.
Very often as well, bars will have a mirror spanning the length of the back wall. This mirror helps visually expand the environment and merchandise wine and liquor. Lighting here represents both a challenge and a very high reward if you contract a firm that has the skills necessary to angle dimmable light indirectly at the mirror so as to avoid reflecting it back into patron’s eyes.
Lighting Control
Due to the large amounts of money generated by most restaurant bars, lighting controls are strongly recommended. A trained lighting control and automation expert can assess your interior architecture, calculate the necessary luminance to adequately light all of your floor space, and program different lighting themes into a central Lutron Grafik Eye, Vantage, or AMX control unit.
These controls are extremely easy to operate from concealed touch panels or wireless hand held remotes. They will allow you to use your lighting to set the mood specific to different crowds, occasions, and seasons of the year. Everything from Happy Hour, conventions and corporate events, and personal birthday parties can be augmented and accentuated with a lighting control system by ILD.
Special Equipment and Techniques
A final advantage to consider when thinking of installing your own lighting system or hiring a lighting design firm is the access to special equipment and lighting techniques that only a professional firm can offer you. Working with a multi-specialist firm such as ILD gives you access to lighting design strategies and equipment you may not have been aware of or considered.
For example, if your restaurant has a wood structure bar on the patio, patio lights normally used in outdoor settings can also be used for overhead and accent lighting of the eaves and beams. Any number of design themes can be implemented as well; from a decorative festive look using rope lights, to a tropical island look using LED signs and decorative candles.
Keep in mind too that LED technology of any kind represents both a high-end technical advantage and a low-end cost to the restaurant owner. LED requires only 20% the electricity of incandescent lighting, and sophisticated commercial equipment like Traxon panel lights can be substituted for a back wall mirror to create a multi-colored spectrum of changing lights. Our lighting control and automation team can also synchronize these panels with music, so that when the songs change, the lights change with them.
Multi-Specialization Offers our Clients More Options
ILD has worked for 25 years to become a leader in not just one, but five major lighting design and electrical service disciplines. As a result, we can offer our clients in hospitality, high-end resort lighting, commercial lighting, bar and restaurant lighting, hotel, and residential landscape lighting more options and more equipment than retail sources can provide..
We headquarter in Houston and work throughout Texas in Austin, Texas, Beaumont, Texas, Dallas, Texas, Fort Worth, Texas, San Antonio, Texas and all surrounding areas.
Contact us now toll free at 1-800-863-1184 for a free consultation. Please visit our lighting blog to read more about lighting controls, home automation, and specialty restaurant lighting and hospitality lighting design by ILD.Labels: Architectural Lighting Houston Texas, Commercial Landscape Lighting, Hospitality Lighting Designers, Outdoor Restaurant Lighting, Restaurant Bar Lighting
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Fine paintings are used as ornate decorations in custom homes and in offices. This is not surprising when you stop to realize has been with in one form or fashion for at least 40,000 years. Light in a paintings itself contributes to the tone of the work by creating a sense of depth through the interplay of light and shadows. Lighting for paintings should not cast shadows, however, but rather must discover and magnify the luminosity of the scene and animate the action between objects and characters. This method of lighting paintings is as old as Lascaux, where firelight was used to make the seemingly crude stick figures of hunters and animals suddenly spring to life with the illusion of three dimensional substance and physical movement.
