Lighting a Living Landscape
CertifiedGreat landscape lighting is not a row of path lights. It is a design decision that changes how a property reads after dark — which trees carry the eye, where a garden gains depth, how the walk to the door feels. Light TN designs landscape lighting around a property’s living elements: specimen trees, planted beds, stonework, water, and the paths between them, lit so the grounds hold their depth instead of disappearing at sunset.
Landscape lighting has one quality no other kind shares: the canvas is alive. A garden grows, a canopy fills in, leaves turn and drop, and a design that looked right the night it went in can be wrong in three seasons. So we light for the landscape you have and the one it is becoming — aiming for the tree a young oak will be in five years, leaving room for beds to mature, and returning to adjust as the grounds change.
The work starts with Daryl Bentfield on your property and ends with a nighttime walkthrough you approve. You see a photorealistic rendering before we dig, installation meets licensed contractor CE-D: 76580 standards, and we return after dark to aim every fixture. It is the design-first work behind more than 500 Middle Tennessee landscapes since 2020, from a studio based in Burns serving Franklin, Brentwood, Belle Meade, Nashville, and the surrounding area.
Each landscape system is designed to your property’s real features and the way you use the grounds after dark. It includes:
Daryl walks the property and reads what is there — the specimen trees, the garden beds, the stonework and water, the paths, and how the planting will change with the seasons. The design starts from the landscape, not a fixture count.
Beam spread and output planned to each element, so a tree, a wall, and a bed each get the right light without harsh hotspots — using the kind of three-angle layering that gives a landscape depth instead of flat brightness.
Uplighting at the trunk for structure and moonlighting from high in the canopy for soft, natural shadow, with cross-lighting where a specimen tree deserves more than one angle. Mature canopy takes longer throws and tighter beams, and we plan for it.
Low, shielded light for walks, steps, and drives, set below eye level so you see the path and never the source. Footing and composition at once, not a runway of bright dots.
A photorealistic rendering of your property at night, so you approve the design on screen before a fixture goes in the ground. Changes happen here, not in the yard.
Professional-grade fixtures chosen for beam control and finish, with the transformer sized to the load plus room to grow and wire run in a hub layout to hold voltage to the far corners of the lot.
Grazing and accent light for perennial beds, ornamental grasses, and flowering shrubs — fixtures tucked into the planting, six to twelve inches off a textured surface, so the garden shows its form at night the way it does by day.
Submersible and surrounding fixtures for fountains, ponds, and pools, placed to light the water without glare across it and wired to the codes that water demands.
A landscape that cost a fortune to design and plant, gone dark at sunset. We light it with the same care that went into planting it, so the trees, beds, and stonework you paid for are the thing you see after dark.
Bright circles and hard shadow lines that look nothing like nature. We use the right beam spread, the right distance, and shielding, so light lands soft and the fixture never shows.
A design that looked right on install night and wrong a few seasons later as the garden grew up. We design to growth — aiming for the tree a sapling will become and leaving the plan room to be adjusted as the landscape fills in.
Lit beds and a black, ankle-turning walk. We balance the composition with low, shielded path and step light, so the way through is sure-footed and still part of the design.
Too many fixtures, too much brightness, the whole yard washed flat. We work by restraint — selective emphasis, contrast, and dark between the lit — so the landscape has depth instead of a glow.
Every landscape project runs the same path, built for the long term and for Middle Tennessee’s terrain and heavy clay.
Daryl walks the property after sunset where he can, photographing the key trees, beds, and features, reading species and grade, and finding the paths that need light for footing as well as the ones that need it for composition.
A landscape lighting plan drawn to your property — fixture positions, the technique for each element, beam spreads, zones, and a transformer sized to the load with room to grow. Fixtures specified by beam control and finish, not by what is on the truck.
We walk you through the plan and the photorealistic rendering, show the fixtures, talk through the path and safety strategy, and refine until it is right — on screen, before anything is dug.
Installation to licensed contractor CE-D: 76580 standards, with the landscape protected. Where wire must cross an established lawn or bed, we bury it with the L2 Line Layer — the only trenchless machine of its kind in the Nashville market — with waterproof connections and the fixtures set with care.
We return after dark to aim and shield every fixture — tree emphasis, garden highlight, path safety, and the source hidden — until the landscape stops looking installed and starts looking designed.
You get the system layout, zone map, and a seasonal adjustment schedule, and we are here season after season as the landscape grows and the design settles in.
Where a mature, expensive landscape is concerned, the work goes past installation — into the canopy knowledge, design coordination, and high-end feature experience it demands.
We work with the landscape architects and designers who drew your property’s plan, so the lighting reveals their intent instead of fighting it. Light is the last layer of a good landscape design, and we treat it that way.
Hundreds of projects lighting oaks, maples, and native hardwood. A mature canopy needs fixtures with longer throw and tighter beams, set and aimed from the right place — the difference between a tree that glows and one that just has a light under it.
Custom water features, specimen trees, outdoor kitchens, infinity-edge pools, and formal gardens, lit with the care a feature worth tens of thousands deserves and the restraint that keeps it from looking lit up.
Our clients' feedback reflects our focus on thoughtful design, professional installation, and outdoor systems that perform exactly as intended.
Light TN's talented team delivered exceptional outdoor lighting design, showcasing a remarkable blend of creativity, attention to detail, and professionalism that exceeded our expectations. Their vision and commitment to quality shone through in their implementation of stunning low voltage landscape lighting that truly enhanced the aesthetic of our outdoor space.
Cynthia Williams
I’ve had the chance to work closely with Daryl and the Light TN team through branding and creative projects through my company, Proof Branding, and I can confidently say they run a first class operation. Daryl is thoughtful, professional, and truly cares about the quality of his work and the experience his clients have. Light TN is clearly built on expertise, attention to detail, and pride in what they do. If you’re looking for a team you can trust and enjoy working with, I would highly recommend Daryl and Light TN.
Matt Cheuvront
Daryl with Light TN, was very professional and very helpful towards questions and concerns about the lights operations and programming ability, including installation. Once installed the light strips blended right in with our homes trim being unnoticeable during the daytime or when not in use. 5 Star experience, dealing with Daryl and Light TN.
john covington
We have been using Daryl and his services since 2020. We feel much safer with our beautiful lighting and it’s also makes it very easy taking dogs out at night. One of many benefits. Highly recommend Daryl and Light TN!
Irina “Ira” Hines
4 months agoI used Light TN service on two different properties. Excellent outcome both times. A very professional service at a fair price.
Bob Pelt
Darryl at LightTennessee is great! He’s always quick to respond very professional with his services and the work that he does do is top notch!
kwk mail
Light TN is an outdoor lighting design and installation company based in Burns, Tennessee, serving Nashville and communities throughout Middle Tennessee. Founded in 2020 by Daryl Bentfield, Light TN specializes in landscape lighting, architectural lighting, permanent roofline lighting, smart outdoor lighting systems, and outdoor audio. Light TN has completed over 500 custom installations and maintains a 4.9-star Google rating across 100+ verified reviews. The company is a licensed Tennessee contractor, BBB accredited with an A+ rating, and a certified BlueHopper permanent lighting installer.
Daryl Bentfield is the owner and principal designer of Light TN, with over 25 years of professional design experience including a background in production and visual storytelling before specializing in outdoor lighting. Daryl personally designs every project and works on site with his crew during installation.
How much does landscape lighting cost? It depends on the property — the number and size of the trees, the complexity of the gardens, the length of the paths, and the grade the system has to cover. A Light TN landscape lighting project is scoped to the property after the on-site assessment, and the on-site design consultation is complimentary.
Tree lighting drives the most — a mature specimen tree takes two to four fixtures. Garden and bed lighting, path and step runs, water features, transformer and wire across a large or sloped lot, and fixture finish all shape the scope. We light by restraint, so the number of fixtures is the number the landscape actually needs, not a quota.
Small Project (15–25 fixtures): $4,500–$8,500
Medium Project (25–45 fixtures): $8,500–$16,000
Large Project (45–75 fixtures): $16,000–$30,000
Estate Project (75+ fixtures): $30,000–$60,000+
Custom landscape lighting design, a photorealistic rendering, premium commercial-grade fixtures with manufacturer lifetime warranties, professional installation with the landscape protected and trenchless wire burial where needed, transformer and electrical, nighttime aiming, and your system documentation.
A 15% deposit is due on projects over $10,000, with the balance at completion and your sign-off. We accept cash, checks, major credit cards, Zelle, and Venmo.
Light TN landscape lighting is scoped to the property — most residential systems run from the mid four figures into the five figures, depending on the trees, gardens, and grade involved. The on-site design consultation is complimentary, and you get an itemized number with your rendering before any work begins.
Most Light TN landscape lighting installs take one to three days, depending on the size of the property and the wire to run. The design work happens before that, and the nighttime aiming happens after dark the same evening or the next.
No. Light TN installs with minimal disruption, and where wire must cross a finished lawn or bed we bury it with the L2 Line Layer, a trenchless machine and the only one in the Nashville market, so mature turf and plantings stay intact.
Specimen-tree lighting is the heart of most Light TN designs. We uplight the trunk for structure and moonlight from high in the canopy for soft, natural shadow, with the throw and beam matched to a tree’s size and the fixtures hidden.
Light TN designs landscape lighting as a living system — aimed for the trees and beds your garden is becoming, not just the night it goes in — and we return to re-aim and adjust as the canopy fills in over the seasons.
No. Light TN scopes each system to the property and what the landscape actually needs, and shares clear cost ranges and an itemized investment with your rendering before any work begins. No basic, standard, or premium tiers, and no coupons.
Light TN landscape lighting runs on a low-voltage system — a transformer steps household power down, buried cable carries it to professional-grade fixtures, and each fixture is placed and aimed to light a specific tree, bed, or path. The design is rendered before installation, and every fixture is aimed after dark.
Light TN designs and installs custom outdoor lighting systems for homes and properties across Middle Tennessee. Every project starts with a consultation, a custom plan, and a commitment to doing the work cleanly — with results that hold up over time.
