When night falls, city buildings all “put on” bright and eye-catching attire, using lights to infuse urban nights with a touch of festivity. The evening urban landscape thrives on these illuminations. With the passage of time, the art of lighting up the city at night has evolved, offering many options. However, floodlighting still stands as a classic method for highlighting architectural beauty. In this post, we will share with you about the 5 key considerations for facade lighting when designed with floodlights. Let’s get started!
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What is Flood lighting?
Floodlighting involves using spotlights or floodlights to illuminate a specific area, creating a significantly higher level of brightness compared to the surrounding environment. This lighting technique not only accentuates the overall look of buildings but also effectively brings out the shapes, three-dimensionality, material textures, surface colors, and even intricate details of objects in the scene.
Flood lighting is not merely about replicating a building’s daytime appearance. Instead, it artfully uses light, color, and shadows to transform the nighttime image of a structure into something more enchanting, vibrant, and grand.
5 Key Considerations for Floodlighting Facade
In modern architectural aesthetics, floodlighting for exterior illumination goes beyond mere lighting—it’s a blend of artistic landscaping and technical finesse. To bring out the best in a building, it’s crucial to customize the selection and placement of floodlights based on the building’s position, purpose, and unique features. This tailored approach ensures that different parts and functional zones of the building speak their own illuminating language.
1. Projection Angle and Direction of Floodlights
By using grouped floodlights positioned along the same direction to illuminate the target object or by projecting contrasting tones from two directions, you can achieve an enhanced sense of three-dimensionality. The projection angle of the floodlights introduces shadows, and the contrast between shadows and brightness can further emphasize the three-dimensional aspects of the building facade.
The size of the shadows projected depends on how bumpy the building surface is and the angle at which the light hits it. For a more pronounced effect on a shallow bump, consider increasing the angle at which the light is projected, ensuring it’s at least 45 degrees away from the surface normal.
2. Projection Distance and Brightness of Floodlights
During the night, how well we see the details of buildings and sculptures mostly depends on how bright the lighting is. That’s why it’s important to place floodlights at different distances as needed, whether you want them to stand out or blend in.
By casting light from afar, you can even out the brightness, while closer projections can bring out the finer details and textures of the surfaces being lit. If the upper part of a surface is 2-4 times brighter than the lower part, it can create a visual illusion of equal brightness throughout.
3. Installation Position and Quantity of Floodlights
When it comes to positioning floodlights, it’s best to place them at a distance from the building that complements its unique features. For a more even spread of light, the distance of the floodlights should be at least 1/10 of the building’s height.
In cases where possible, floodlights can be mounted directly onto the building structure. In some architectural designs abroad, the need for facade lighting has been factored in from the start, with special mounting platforms set aside for floodlights. This clever setup keeps the light fixtures out of sight, preserving the cohesive look of the building’s exterior.
When installing floodlights on the building itself, it’s best to make sure they stick out no more than 0.7m to 1m to prevent patchy lighting. The distance between the lights and the building depends on the type of light beam, the building’s height, and factors like the color of the surface being lit and the brightness of the surroundings.
If you’re using narrow beam floodlights with high wall illumination needs, on darker surfaces with bright surroundings, a closer arrangement of lights works well. On the other hand, if the situation is the opposite, with brighter surfaces and darker surroundings, you can space the lights out more.
4. Choosing the Right Light Color for Floodlights
In general, when illuminating an architectural facade, the focus is on using light to enhance the beauty of the building and showcase its original colors during the daytime with light sources that have strong color rendering properties.
Instead of trying to alter the building’s appearance with light colors, it’s best to match the lighting closely to the materials and colors of the building itself. For example, if you have a golden roof, consider using a warm yellowish light like high-pressure sodium lamps to accentuate it. For blue roofs and walls, opt for white lights with good color rendering like LED wall washers.
Using a mixture of RGB-colored lights is great for short-term events but not ideal for permanent architectural lighting. RGB colored lights, especially against shadows, can strain the eyes and cause visual fatigue over time.
– During the 2015 World Expo, the Italian Pavilion opted for floodlighting exclusively to illuminate the building. Lighting up white surfaces presents its own set of challenges. When choosing the light color, it’s crucial to grasp the essence of the “white body” accurately. The surface, made of a rough matte material, benefits from a method that involves casting light from a distance over a large area, creating a pleasing effect. The angle at which the floodlights are positioned results in a lovely “gradient” effect, where the light color subtly transitions from bottom to top, adding to the beauty of the illumination.
5. Use Anti-Glare Flood Lights
When planning the lighting design with floodlights, it’s essential to take into account the surrounding lighting environment. To ensure a nice even spread of light, the distance between the fixtures mounted on the building should be 2.5 to 3 times the length of the brackets. If the spacing is too wide, it can create bright areas in a fan-like pattern.
If you’re using side lighting, remember to consider shading the fixtures to minimize excess light. When it comes to illuminating buildings with floodlights, a common approach is to angle the lights from bottom to top. This helps significantly reduce glare and ensures a pleasant lighting effect.
– When illuminating buildings with floodlights, shining the lights upwards from the bottom can help minimize glare.
Design requirements for flood lighting
1. The design should ensure that up close, one can appreciate the material colors and textures of the building facade, while from a distance, the lighting should highlight the building’s volume and facade colors.
2. It’s important to understand the unique features of the building facade and illuminate it from different angles to create a sense of depth and intriguing layers of light colors.
3. Accentuating the illumination on the building facade to create a striking contrast with the surrounding environment, effectively utilizing the surroundings to enhance the building’s presence.
4. Understanding how the building facade materials reflect light is key to determining the necessary lighting intensity.
Conclusion
While floodlighting is a commonly used technique in outdoor lighting design, relying solely on it for complex structures can lead to flat illumination and potential light pollution issues. That’s why we advocate for a varied approach to spatial lighting that includes techniques like floodlighting, contour lighting, backlighting, dynamic lighting, and more.
Lighting design is never done in isolation, especially in the realm of urban nightscapes where it’s an evolving field within architectural electrical design. This means that when planning lighting schemes, it’s crucial to harmonize them with the architectural style for the best results.
As an architectural facade lighting manufacturer, Luminouslite understands your need to light up the building facade. Our products are designed to blend seamlessly with various curtain walls, with high quality and easy maintenance. If you’re looking for a professional facade lighting supplier to illuminate your project, welcome to contact us!
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