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When Do You Need to Hire a Lighting Designer?

The Answer? It Depends

When Do You Need to Hire a Lighting Designer?

Some people might start reading here and ask, "Why do I need a lighting designer at all?" And you might not. You might have a great eye for decor and style and would never dream of hiring an interior designer, either. There are design trades where a professional brings tremendous expertise and experience to the table, yet they are optional to get the job done. In other words, you can do your own interior and lighting design, but you should know what you're doing if you want to be happy with the results. 

So back to our original question: do you need to hire a lighting designer for your Atlanta, GA, home? We will somewhat cagily answer, it depends. Ultimately you can decide, but here is our take.

SEE ALSO: Why It Pays to Work with a Lighting Designer

A New House

If you're building a new house, hiring a lighting designer might be a wise investment. But much will depend on how the builder and architect approach lighting design. Do they specify standard lighting plans in every space? Were they only concerned with enough lumens of light in all the rooms? Or have they gone the extra mile and specified a higher-level lighting package that takes advantage of the latest technology, fixtures, and control? If you use a custom builder, they may work with a lighting designer to customize the plan for your home. But often, you may find just the bare minimum of thought has gone into lighting, so you may want to hire a professional. 

You Have Beautiful Artwork and Collections

Perhaps you're a collector of art, memorabilia, and artifacts from around the world or Atlanta's arts scene. You like to highlight and feature these in your home. One of the best ways to showcase it is with customized lighting. The standard or typical home lighting design isn’t made for this. You might need the services of a professional to specify the right fixtures, systems, and control setups to show off your collections optimally. 

You Have Unusual Spaces

Once you get outside of the typical in home design, lighting a space is more of a challenge. Whether it's a house with walls of large windows, ultra-high ceilings, unusual wall and ceiling finishes, or different layouts, creating the atmosphere you want with light requires more skill. A professional that understands all the lighting options available and how they interplay with spaces and materials is much better equipped to create the right plan, as they see and notice things that others don’t. 

A Design Alternative

So, can you get by without a lighting designer? As we’ve said, it depends. But we can also provide an alternative to consider. GHT Group has access to the best architectural lighting brands, and we also have trained professionals that understand the latest lighting solutions and the options they present. Much as we work with architects and interior designers, we can work with lighting designers to configure and install these solutions in your home. But we can also help you evaluate these options directly, and we can draw on the design expertise of our partner brands to solve many of your sophisticated lighting needs. 


Whether you want to hire a professional lighting designer or avail yourself of our lighting design skills and resources, we're here to help. Reach out to us here to learn more, or click the chat box below to connect with us right away. We would love to help you!