Three Types Of Lighting For Each Room

Lighting fixtures come in many shapes and sizes. Some look good, and some look downright crazy. But, lighting is crucial - it sets the mood of the room and can even help you concentrate better. The right light can keep you awake, or make you want to fall asleep. Because of this, we have three types of lighting: Ambient, task, and accent. Each have their own purpose or function in our everyday lives, but do you know how to properly utilize each?

Ambient

This lighting is also called general lighting, and is the overhead lighting of the room. Whether it is a chandelier or a recessed lighting fixture, this light generally provides the overall illumination of the room. Ambient lighting is the most fundamental and functional lighting of the three. Although ambient lighting is typically used as the primary source of light for a room, installing a dimmer switch can help to instantly change the room’s mood from focused to relaxed and romantic.  

Task

The name of this lighting type speaks for itself. Task lighting is specifically used to help you perform tasks. Unlike ambient lighting, task lighting is much smaller and designed to only illuminate certain things. By having a smaller light, task lighting eliminates the glares that can be produced by ambient overhead fixtures. Task lighting fixtures are smaller and are mounted on desks, dressers or under cabinets. Task lighting is commonly used for reading, working on hobbies, and studying.

Accent

Although this lighting is not the most useful for us, it helps to spotlight things, and bring new life to an object or piece. Accent lighting helps to guide your eyes to a specific area or object. They are commonly used to spotlight paintings, plants or sculptures that would otherwise get lost in your vision of the room. These lights provide much less lighting in terms of area, but the intensity of the lights needs to be greater than any others to showcase what is being lit.

Now that you know the different styles of lighting, let us know in the comments section below which is your favorite! You can also find multiple styles of accent and task lighting fixtures in our showroom as well, including the two pictured above.