Landscape Lighting Resource

George Gruel
Owner
The Odd Stick Studio

I am passionate about producing the best, and most accurate, realistic photographs of lighting projects. I want to share all I know about this subject, with you. I have spent countless hours shooting and experimenting with the ultimate capture of lighting projects with digital cameras. Capturing it, so it looks on the monitor, or in a print, as it is perceived by your eye and mind.

The adage, a picture is worth a thousand words, is true, especially in the design world.
And, for lighting designers looking to market their projects, a high-quality
photograph is worth even more.

The photographer’s job is to capture the scene as close to what the eye perceives as possible.

Designers owe it to their industry to promote quality design and lighting in the most effective way.

My work has been published in major trade magazines and lighting books.

To see more of what I do, please go to: www.oddstick.com

Jack Magai
Owner
Magai Arboriculture

Jack Magai has been certified as an arborist by the International Society of Arboriculture since 1997, and delivers expert opinions for municipalities, businesses and educational institutions. He has lectured to urban planners, landscape architects, master gardeners and landscape lighting students.

Magai Arboriculture, which he founded in Seattle in 1991, serves the needs of unabashed tree lovers, their neighbors and governments by providing a preventative, holistic approach to tree care. The company specializes in assessing the structural integrity of large, old trees, and has extensive experience designing and installing dynamic cabling systems. It occasionally performs formal risk assessments and oversees tree-sensitive construction sites. The company, located in Troy, New York since 2000, has grown to also serve the aerial needs of landscape lighting designers. www.Jackmagai.com

We all come to the Institute to both share and learn from one another.  Amongst the staff, there is a healthy and necessary amount of overlap. At the same time, we each bring something unique, special and vital to the skills of the landscape lighting professional.  The unique part of the puzzle which I bring to the Institute is the skill and appreciation of pruning plant material, with an emphasis on trees.  Trees are often the backbone of a landscape.  Their size, their structure and their ability to provide stunning focal points makes them crucial in an overall lighting scheme.  They are urban giants which can transform a garden, a neighborhood, or an entire city.  Treating trees with an appreciation for their care, health, and beauty is a totally unappreciated art.  Whether the lighting designer tackles this chore on their own or is able to instruct or find a person capable of this task can make the difference between a good job and a great one.  In my years of travel throughout North America, Europe and Asia, a defining feature of the most impressive cities and landscapes has always been the care for and the layout of the trees.  I approach this skill with complete commitment, passion and an understanding of the importance of my role in sharing my knowledge with others.  Whether the students go on to illuminate private gardens, are the caretakers of these gardens or find themselves working on large urban projects, I know this to be a vital and necessary skill.  The Institute is one of only two places (Merritt College in Oakland, CA being the other) that I know of where people of various persuasions can come to learn this art form.  During nighttime demonstrations I am able to show students, with relatively few cuts, how the trees they are lighting can go from good to breathtaking.  Having this as a newfound passion is my goal for each student who comes to the Institute.

Exposure to all types of electrical construction with specialty experience in remodeling and landscape lighting.

In the late 1970s I developed an interest in facilitating lighting designers to help them realize their goals.  The process involved a different way of managing the information about the projects and allowed me to develop a better understanding of the lighting concepts involved.   This awareness insured a successful completion of the projects with the original design tenets intact.  In the area of landscape lighting, the esthetic placement of the lighting elements and the subtle adjustments in the field produce results far greater than lighting the same areas in a generic manner.  The value/reward of this understanding allows me to assist the landscape lighting designer when it comes to proper power distribution, control selection and integration with the existing electrical components at a property when possible.  Local and national electrical installation requirements (code and ordinance compliance) affect the electrical infrastructure of a project.  Electrical code compliance, sustainability issues and required maintenance of landscape lighting projects must not work at cross purposes to realizing the design intent.  The successful landscape lighting designer, installer and maintenance technician need to have an understanding of the components involved in a project including the fixtures and lamps, the installation equipment and procedures, the local and national requirements, the controls, the maintenance issues, the esthetics and the design intent.  Mastering these interrelated disciplines will help maximize the results for the client and designer.

John Pletcher
Owner/Principal Designer
Natural Accents L.L.C.

Growing up in the wholesale floral industry in northern Indiana was the beginning of my love for the beauty of the natural environment.  Surrounded by flowers and plants every day, I developed a special affinity for the effect of nature and how it could bring emotion to people. I remember one particular day, staring at a bouquet of tulips and focusing on the complex beauty of one, perfect tulip, which stood out from the entire bouquet of equally beautiful tulips simply because of the sunlight shining through the windows overhead in my father’s greenhouse. It may have still been late winter in northern Indiana, but with the light shining on that one perfect bloom, it felt like a beautiful spring day to me.

That was my first realization of how important light is to a scene.

In the 1980s, I moved to Boulder, Colo., and was introduced to a whole new type of natural environment. I spent hours staring at the visual majesty of the Rocky Mountains and the interplay of light and shadows.

Truly, light and nature can be art.

I received a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1988, and then moved to southern California. Once again, I saw how important lighting can be — this time with a focus on light’s interplay with water.

Lighting’s effect on the overall environment became a passion.

Finally, in 2002, I was able to open Natural Accents L.L.C., focusing all my energies, attention and passion on low voltage, energy efficient outdoor lighting design and installation.

I consider myself fortunate to have gone from that young man in Indiana working in the family flower business to where I am today.  I now get to use my passion for art, light and nature on a daily basis and share that passion and beauty with my clients.

Jesse Loucks
Founder/Owner
Lighting Design, LLC

As a licensed electrical contractor since 2001, I was occasionally asked to install “landscape lighting.”  However it wasn’t until I attended a workshop at Cooper Lighting in 2007, which was instructed by Jan Moyer, that I began to understand how to properly design and install landscape lighting.  Inspired by my experience at Cooper, I enrolled in the Landscape Lighting Institute in 2008 and formed JL Lighting Design, LLC in 2009.  My design company not only complements my own contracting business, but JL Lighting also advises landscape architects/designers and other electrical contractors on the intricacies of landscape illumination.

I remember starting in the electrical industry in 1984 as an electrical apprentice with a salary of $3.78/hr. After 4 years I acquired my journeyman’s license and after 2 more years became a master electrician in 1990. I worked all aspects of the electrical industry including an instructor for Local 208 for several years.

Growing up in a family who did landscaping, it was a natural fit for me when I started with landscape lighting. I attended several day seminars sponsored by manufacturers to learn what I could. In May of 2003 I traveled up to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and attended the Landscape Lighting Institute. This is where I met Jan Moyer for the first time. At that point I was hooked and knew this is what I wanted to do, focusing my electrical company in landscape lighting design and installation.

Today I am a mentor at the Landscape Lighting Institute at Saluki Park.  I am assigned a group and help them during their assignment mocking up an area at Saluki Park, assisting them and sharing my knowledge I have acquired over the years with landscape lighting and electrical.

Ron Carter
Director of Training
Kichler Lighting Group

Having many U.S. design patents to his credit, Ron’s extensive engineering experience led him to Kichler Lighting in Cleveland, Ohio where he was the Product Development Engineer for landscape lighting products for over 15 years before becoming their Corporate Training Manager. Discovering his passion for lighting the night early on in his career at Kichler, Ron got involved in all aspects of landscape lighting with the company. By experimenting on his own property, he quickly learned how to effectively light the landscape and his home in addition to learning how to control voltage drop. He continues this experience by sharing his knowledge as one of the instructor/mentors for the Landscape Lighting Resource Institute. He is also on the Testing Certification Committee for the Association Of Lighting Professionals-(AOLP) helping shape the testing experience to be the most beneficial for all those taking the examination the AOLP offers. Ron is more than happy to share what he knows, just ask him!

Before opening my own landscape lighting installation and maintenance company, I was the "In-House" electrician for a high-end custom home remodeler / builder in New York State's Capitol Region for over 10 years. Working with mostly higher-end clients, I frequently needed to find unique lighting and electrical control solutions that were aesthetically pleasing with simple and intuitive functionality. I frequently anticipated and made provisions for future projects that had not even been conceived by the client during my installations. These challenges allowed me to express my creativity, to "think outside the box", and use readily available materials in new and creative ways. As an electrician, it has always been necessary to keep current on electrical and building codes. Fortunately for me, I have always enjoyed educating myself about new technologies and standards, as well as discovering new methods to tackle old problems.

Several years ago, I was invited to attend The Landscape Lighting Institute. It was a awesome experience for me, and I realized that I could combine my practical electrical skills and my desire to enhance the beauty of my surroundings and of nature. Since then, I have been fortunate to work closely with Jan Moyer on many projects and have become a valued member of her design team. Now, as a rover at the Landscape Lighting Institute, I am proud and honored to be able to share all that I have learned with others.  One of my most favorite activities is helping attendees understand the requirements and challenges of the equipment and the electrical installation portion of landscape lighting.  As I prepare the equipment for the class, the excitement of meeting new friends and raising the bar for the landscape lighting field makes the task seem less daunting.  For the short time that we are together for the class, I feel more like a host to family visiting from out of town rather than just a presenter or a tour guide. It is important to me that all of our attendees have a world class learning experience in a relaxing and beautiful environment.

Tom Williams
Founder/Owner
Williams Landscape Lighting Design

Tom spent 20 years of his professional life teaching Theatrical Design (including Theatrical Lighting Design) to undergraduate students at Mercer University in Macon, GA, Knox College in Galesburg, IL and Castleton College in Castleton, VT. He found the art and practice of teaching theatre to be deeply rewarding as he introduced and guided several hundreds of students through the complexities of mounting a theatrical production at least 101 times in my professional teaching career. In 1997 Tom was fortunate to have an opportunity to study Landscape Lighting Design at the Landscape Lighting Institute. This seminar was sponsored by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lighting Research Institute and taught by Janet L Moyer. That experience and Ms Moyer's timely support opened a door for Tom into a new and deeply challenging field outside of Academic Life. He made the decision to leave teaching and to accept the challenge of making a living in the private sector as a Landscape Lighting Designer. Through his association with Ms Moyer and the Landscape Lighting Institute, he has had the double pleasure of combining a love of teaching and a love of lighting design. Tom is very proud to be part of Ms Moyer's Landscape Lighting Institute's team. We are a team committed to teaching sustainable practice and artistic theory for lighting the landscape.

We all come to the Institute to both share and learn from one another.  Amongst the staff, there is a healthy and necessary amount of overlap. At the same time, we each bring something unique, special and vital to the skills of the landscape lighting professional.  The unique part of the puzzle which I bring to the Institute is the skill and appreciation of pruning plant material, with an emphasis on trees.  Trees are often the backbone of a landscape.  Their size, their structure and their ability to provide stunning focal points makes them crucial in an overall lighting scheme.  They are urban giants which can transform a garden, a neighborhood, or an entire city.  Treating trees with an appreciation for their care, health, and beauty is a totally unappreciated art.  Whether the lighting designer tackles this chore on their own or is able to instruct or find a person capable of this task can make the difference between a good job and a great one.  In my years of travel throughout North America, Europe and Asia, a defining feature of the most impressive cities and landscapes has always been the care for and the layout of the trees.  I approach this skill with complete commitment, passion and an understanding of the importance of my role in sharing my knowledge with others.  Whether the students go on to illuminate private gardens, are the caretakers of these gardens or find themselves working on large urban projects, I know this to be a vital and necessary skill.  The Institute is one of only two places (Merritt College in Oakland, CA being the other) that I know of where people of various persuasions can come to learn this art form.  During nighttime demonstrations I am able to show students, with relatively few cuts, how the trees they are lighting can go from good to breathtaking.  Having this as a newfound passion is my goal for each student who comes to the Institute.

Pam Morris, owner of Exciting Lighting Inc. is known as a creative design force, distinguished in the lighting field over 20 years as an innovator of artistic luminaire design.

Pam’s background in fine arts allows her a unique understanding of lighting. Her view is that light is not just something we see and use to see...it's something we feel and use to feel.  “Often when people are creating a mood, they just think in terms of dimming the lights.  That would be like playing the same music all the time….. just at different volumes.  In today’s market, efficiency is driving many lighting regulations, although, the most important metric of success is not included, how does the light feel?

Lighting needs to be enchanting, captivating and mysterious, not just functional and efficient.  ….. Using the ability of light to create states of mind…AND, it’s power to evoke a felt sense of connection to the natural world, as lighting designers, we can  inspire and touch people on a cellular level.

Landscape lighting in many ways offers the greatest opportunity to address these strengths of light.
No matter how rich you are, you can't pay someone else to feel for you... lighting is a very personal and primal experience, especially when it includes illuminating nature."

Ken Martin
Founder/Owner
Copper Expressions

My name is Ken Martin, owner of Copper Expressions Landscape Lighting and Design located in St. George, Ontario, Canada. I am firm believer in lifelong learning, and have practiced this throughout my career. As a Construction and Maintenance Electrician, I was educated by a journeyman model, whereby necessary practical skills were taught in a hands-on environment, and technical skills were found in the classroom. Upon completing my Electrical Certificate, I began teaching other apprentices the skills they would need in a practical setting. This educational experience has provided me with the foundation for teaching others, and I have been able to successfully transfer this passion and skill for teaching to my landscape lighting and design work. As a Rover for the Landscape Lighting Institute, I offer both the practical experience and technical expertise and blend with it a passion for sharing my knowledge with others. I look forward to learning as much from the participants as I hope to share with them.

Exposure to all types of electrical construction with specialty experience in remodeling and landscape lighting.

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Kathryn entered the lighting industry after graduating with a bachelor of science degree in interior design.  She knew after having one course on lighting that would be the focus of her career.  While working at Lightolier she completed the IES courses and moved into her lighting design career.  After years of project management and high end retail lighting design Kathryn recognized the diversity that residential lighting provides.  While working with Sean O'Connor Lighting she developed her residential lighting design skills.  After attending the Landscape Lighting Institute in 2010, her eyes were opened to all the design possibilities provided by the landscape.  She finds the endless design challenges and the innovation in the lighting industry to be invigorating.  Kathryn especially appreciates the blank canvas and honesty the dark landscape provides.