New construction lighting planning and implementation

I am certainly not an engineer freak either, but I do expect to discuss the question of color temperature with the lighting designer. And there’s not much you can do with describing it in words. You have to have seen a 2700 K light and also a 3000 K light. Then you can say what you want where. But trying to put that into words and then hoping the lighting designer gets it right is difficult.

Do you know what luminous flux, light intensity and temperature are required to create a cozy mood or a certain atmosphere?

Exactly! I can’t understand how anyone can then call lighting design "nonsense." I can’t expect any Ikea salesperson to plan my entire house taking all these technical questions into account.

I am certainly not an engineering freak either, but I do expect the question about the color temperature to be discussed with the lighting planner. And there’s not much you can do by describing it in words. You have to have seen a 2700 K light and also a 3000 K light. Then you can say what you want where. But trying to describe it and then hoping the lighting planner gets it right is difficult.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that either, because then the color temperature actually means something to you. The same might possibly apply to the wattage. For me, it was only about some theoretical values with which a normal person has little connection. And I think that’s a thankless task.
Color temperatures of white LED light, for example, often have meaningful descriptions like cold white or warm white, so that you can already develop a feeling for it and make the planning plausible. But how about the beam angle, for instance? For me, for example, it ends there, how 20 degrees or 30 degrees look. With lumens and candelas, long before that. I would definitely expect advice from the planner too, for example, what role the CRI plays, because the color temperature (2500K) initially has nothing to do with a luminaire’s ability to reproduce colors. So two luminaires can have 2500K, but with one your great hallway floor looks yellowish, with the other very natural. That also often explains the somewhat higher prices of “proper” LED luminaires compared to cheaper ones from hardware stores or IKEA. But even here, if the customer doesn’t care, that’s also okay, but he should point it out. Whether then the CRI, temperature, and beam angle are listed for every luminaire on the plan, everyone must decide for themselves. I wouldn’t need it, a reference to the model is enough for me, which usually provides the data anyway. But that’s a matter of taste, I think. But that was not primarily what I was getting at [emoji6]

The art is to recognize where to get a functionally high-quality lamp, possibly without expensive design frills.

So to speak, the product between Ikea and what lighting planners usually want to sell.

Everything is finished now except for the question of how the kitchen peninsula will be illuminated. The planner says that also using spotlights would be too simplistic. The light strip he showed does not convince me. I am now looking to see if maybe pendant lights could be used.

Alternatively, he said to simply use surface-mounted ceiling lights instead of spotlights; those also add variety.

So, I ask again: is the lighting planner now only planning the wall and ceiling spotlights? Or is he making a lighting plan as it should be: there must be main lighting, possibly dimmable, a floor lamp in the reading corner, and a light strip of 5-7 spotlights up there? I only read about spotlights and more spotlights here. But a proper lighting plan includes the whole range of lamps because one spotlight cannot achieve everything ( , the difference to coziness lies in the height of the light cone).

And what is the difference in the office between working on the PC and leisure time on the PC?

So, I ask again: is the lighting designer now only planning the wall and ceiling spots?

He plans everything. You can also see the pendant lights above the dining table, for example.

And what is the difference in the office between working on the PC and leisure time on the PC?

A purely functional office, where you only work, is sufficient in my view with appropriate emotionless lighting that is purely focused on brightness.

In an office with leisure quality of stay, I find it nice to create different lighting moods. For example, late in the evening, when I am just doing a few things on the PC without reading, etc., I don’t like to have the full fixed lighting on but only atmospheric light.

And what is the difference in the office between working on the PC and leisure time on the PC?

I asked myself that too. And for purely atmospheric lighting, a desk lamp and the floor lamp you have by the sofa for reading are sufficient. However, I have never found my workplace lighting to be emotionless. It creates a really pleasant, almost daylight-like light and, due to the emission upwards, also creates atmosphere.

Back then, I had my own ideas for my apartment. And I had the opportunity to visit the lamp and lighting studio at the electrical wholesale store. They had all kinds of lamps with the most diverse light sources installed there and could show various scenarios with daylight but also under darkening. Here I also saw the chosen workplace lighting in real life.

I believe it is much more effective to learn from examples and then apply the insights to yourself and your own lifestyle.