The architecture of light: architectural lighting design concepts and techniques. A textbook of procedures and practices for the architect, interior designer and lighting designer pdfdrive com

In the United States, roughly 1/3rd of the electricity we consume is for electric lighting. This is a huge percentage, and means that even small improvements in the application of light can mean large reductions in our consumption of electricity. You may live in a municipality where energy conservation codes are written into building codes and certain criteria must be met in order to get a building permit.

All lighting designers should research and investigate the organizations that are

taking the initiative to suggest and mandate progressive, energy efficient lighting design.

California State Energy Code Title 24 ASHRAE 90.1
USGBC including LEED Program Savings by Design
International Dark Sky Association Energy Star
US Department of Energy DSIRE Solar Incentives
energy.ca.gov/title24 aashrae.org usgbc.org savingsbydesign.com darksky.org energystar.gov energy.gov/savings dsireusa.org
But remember: Some conservation recommendations take the form of very clinical methods for reducing the consumption of electricity through draconian limits on source types, connected load and control requirements. Many guidelines and codes are based on a “lighting power density” (watts-per-
square-foot) prescription that is based on the use type of each project space. Remember that your intuition of where light belongs in a space and your understanding of how to accomplish more with less light are the foundation of your ability to create impacting design with minimal light waste. The more you rely on brightness through contrast and visual interest, the more you will find yourself using less light through good design without having to “reduce” or eliminate design ideas.
Put light where it belongs, decide what lighted surfaces will contribute best to your lighting goals, and you will be well on your way to conservative design through conscious placement of light.

Designing with New Eyes

Remember that as designers, we are ultimately responsible for how people feel and, therefore, interact with the built environment around them. There are numerous lessons to be learned from classical design, as well as the natural world all around us. Look at the world with designer’s eyes. Always be on the hunt for tools and techniques that you can use in your design to impart a specific feeling or function.
Light has immense power.
Architectural projects are rarely recognized as great without having superbly- executed integration of light. Many good projects use light as an afterthought, but every great project has lighting thought at the very core. There is no “right” lighting just as there is no “right” design. There is only design and designed light that are well thought-out and that which is not. If you know your space, you know more than enough to get to work placing light onto the surfaces and objects that will enhance your design. The tools presented here are simply ways to get you to better visualize and draw light.
“If you can conceive of ideas and communicate them to others, you are eighty percent of the way to great design.”
Hopefully, the more technical aspects of implanting these ideas will serve you as you solve your own lighting challenges.
Design is a state of mind. A true designer can design anything. It is the
knowledge of a reliable, creative design processes that will give you confidence in the form of a bottomless well of great ideas that jump from your mind onto paper. Let those ideas out. Write them down, sketch them up. Do whatever it takes to empty your head of concepts to create room for new ones. There is no need to self-censor your creative ideas. There is a whole world out there that will help you weed through your thoughts and filter out the best of them.
Good luck in designing and never stop observing and learning from the environment around you.