Effective outdoor lighting schemes

By Holly O’Dell

Lighting a tent’s interior can take an event from bland to bold—but providing a lighting scheme outside the tent can have just as great an effect. “A lot of people spend a little extra money to get the nice cathedral windows in the tents, and it’s beautiful until the sun goes down,” says Daniel Butcher, president of Luminous Designs Inc. in Farmingdale, N.Y. “One of the things we can do is expand the depth of the property and the event by lighting up the landscaping around the tent. While you are in the tent looking out at night, you can see the property. It’s a nice added touch.”

Luminous Designs has lit trees and bushes, but it has used items such as glowing spheres outside the tented event as well. Decorative elements such as AirDD® Hi-Lights™ have also been used to line a path that directs guests to the entrance. These types of features offer “a bit of ambient light for people to see as they walk in the dark, and create an environment outdoors for guests without having to be in the pitch black,” Butcher says.

Holly O’Dell is a Minnesota-based freelance writer.