I have a long "L" shaped wrap around front porch that has 9 columns, and the planter bed in front of it has a lot of trees, so I'm trying to decide which to light, or both. I'm thinking of just doing the trees with some path lights along the bed. In the attached pic, I'm thinking that I would do the two individual trees on the right (looks like 1 in the pic) then maybe a wash for the 3 trees to the left of the green lids, 1 for the single tree next to those, then a couple for the oleanders on the corner, 1 for the flag, and either 3 for the sagos and trees at the end, or maybe 2 washes. The second window on the left is the master BR, so i don't want too much light on it. The outlet is to the left of the entry steps, so I won't be doing anything on that side of the walkway, at least at the moment. Beds are getting redone, next week, with some low shrubs, just to hide the foundation. I'm thinking it would be best to get the lights in before they put in new mulch. Would love to hear your thoughts!
Beautiful home - especially the wrap-around porch! I'd be happy to make some general recommendations. I took the liberty of attaching some photos to help illustrate. With your setup, personally I'd prefer a combination of illuminating the great architecture and the beautiful landscape. You could consider a combination of illuminating the columns and a staggered pattern on the trees to avoid a runway look - essentially illuminating every other tree or whatever pattern you'd prefer. Beam spreads on the columns should be kept to the narrowest degree offered for the fixture/bulb you are using, for the trees you could likely increase the beam spread to a 38° or keep a standard 60° - either could look great. Path lights are always great for garden beds - they would provide illumination out in the yard and if placed in closer proximity to the porch they could also provide subtle illumination for walking/safety along the edge of the porch. For the clusters of smaller plants combined with the trees, you could consider using flood lights (perhaps 2 for the larger cluster near the driveway). Many homeowners wish to illuminate their American flags (adhering to flag code mainly) - a compact MR11 spotlight would be ideal for this if you were considering it. Low-profile in-ground lights would be ideal for the columns - hidden light sources always make for beautiful designs. Traditional spotlights likely more ideal for the trees given the adjustability they can offer for all of those different angled trunks.
