What do event planning, interior design and theater have in common? They all involve setting the stage for a good time! Putting together an event, like decorating a home or crafting a play, is all about evoking the right vibe. Whether you’re planning a romantic wedding, sweet bridal or baby shower, or corporate soirée, elements like color, texture, and event lighting are especially important. Oftentimes, it’s the subtle nuances that truly transform a space from an ordinary gatherings into an extraordinary experience!
Event lighting in particular is an often overlooked, but integral part of a celebration. It’s not just about overhead lighting and a dimmer switch. You can use market lighting, GOBOs, pin spots, uplights, and more to create a customized ambiance, no matter what your personal style is.
At Celebration Gardens, we understand the importance of event lighting in outdoor celebrations especially, which is why we took this into consideration when designing our botanical garden event venue. This is also why we’re sharing the details in this post with you!
Let’s talk about how event lighting ensures your celebration shines… literally!
Why Event Lighting Matters
Event lighting is more than just illumination. It’s a design element that can influence the atmosphere, guide guests, and enhance the overall visual appeal of your event. In outdoor settings, where natural light is a variable, lighting becomes even more crucial.
Its primary purpose is to set the mood! For example, soft, warm lighting can evoke a sense of romance while brighter or colorful lights can serve to start the party.
Event lighting can also be strategic and draw attention to certain event elements, like your wedding cake or dance floor. Specialty lighting in these areas makes them focal points and can let guests know what the next festivity is.
Something you might not have considered when it comes to event lighting is safety! At our outdoor venue, we know how essential this is, so we have installed proper lighting along pathways to help guests navigate the property safely after sunset.?
Types of Event Lighting for Outdoor Celebrations
From functionality to aesthetic, event lighting is a key component of an outdoor celebration. We’ve taken the guesswork out of this at Celebration Gardens by including many types of built-in lighting, and offering add-ons for additional enhancements. Understanding the different types of lighting can help you choose the right ambiance for your event, so let’s explore each one!
Market Lighting:
Whether at home or an outdoor event, everyone loves market lighting! The cozy glow of Edison bulbs is both classic and romantic. That’s why we have built them into our Grand Pavilion!
This indoor/outdoor event space can seat up to 175 guests and features open-air siding, garden views, fans if it’s warm, heaters if it’s cool, and market lighting. When the sun goes down, the lights blink on, creating the perfect atmosphere for dinner and dancing. It also encourages relaxed mixing and mingling, whether that’s in our gardens or around the fire pit.
We also have pre-installed market lighting throughout our gardens, like in our butterfly garden, to give you that cozy glow no matter where you are.
Landscape Lights:
Landscape lighting also comes included within our venue rental. This is the functional type of event lighting that allows you and your guests to explore the property safely after dark. These LED lights line pathways between event spaces and help illuminate different areas of the gardens. While this is primarily significant for navigational purposes, this type of lighting also helps enhance your event pictures!
Especially if you are taking wedding portraits around the property at night, a well-lit setting results in clearer photos!
Uplighting:
These small lights are typically used around an event space to infuse touches of color. They are usually projected on walls or columns around the room in your wedding color, or placed at the base of trees for outdoor events. This kind of event lighting can create a dramatic effect and also work to highlight special features at the venue.
Here at Celebration Gardens, we’ve also used uplights to illuminate the Gazebo, key foliage, and even guest tables!
Photography: Dawn Aiello Photography
Pin Spot Lighting:
Pin spots are a specialty event lighting type that are meant to draw attention to a specific spot in the event space. These are focused beams of light that accentuates elements, like your wedding cake, floral centerpieces, or entry table. They are like mini spotlights designed to direct guests’ focus to certain aesthetic elements.
GOBO Lighting:
This is the most custom type of event lighting because it features your personal monogram or logo, projected onto a surface like a wall or the dance floor. This is especially popular for weddings, where a wedding monogram is being used throughout the event design. You can project your monogram with this special lighting on the dance floor for your first dance or project it on the wall behind you as you cut the cake.
Even if you don’t have your own custom monogram, you can still select your preferred pattern to project onto the dance floor!
Event Lighting Enhancements:
Other noteworthy types of event lighting include creative options, like chandeliers and cold sparks! Adding a chandelier above your sweetheart table for example, helps highlight this area and make it extra special for you and your new spouse. It also gives off even more cozy lighting as the night goes on.
Our couples also love booking cold sparks to light up the night and add an extra fun touch to their wedding! You can use them for your grand entrance into the reception, first dance, grand exit at the end of the night, or even all of the above!
If you’re having a photo booth at your event, a neon sign may be right for you! We customize the sign to feature your name and hang it on a faux greenery backdrop, creating a highly personalized area. Plus, you get to keep the sign as a memento!
Last but not least, don’t forget the beautiful simplicity of adding candles! From pillar candles to hurricane candles to votive candles, sprinkling these throughout your wedding design will cast a natural amber glow that never goes out of style.
Tour Celebration Gardens:
Celebration Gardens is Orlando’s premier botanical garden wedding and event venue, located in Winter Park, FL. Our Wedding Gazebo, Intimate Pavilion, Grand Pavilion, and lush gardens provide a seamless flow from ceremony to cocktail hour to reception. We also offer all-inclusive wedding packages to make wedding planning as simple and stress-free as possible!
Are you interested in having your event at our beautiful outdoor venue? Contact us today! Our friendly team members would love to chat with you and provide you with a customized quote.