There are five basic ways to arrange the lighting in your home. Ambient Lighting Provides general, all-purpose light and enables people to move about the home safely. Unless visually demanding activities are done in the room, you should avoid high illuminance levels (the amount of light that reaches a surface) from ambient lighting, and instead complement the ambient light with individual accent and/or task lighting. Indirect Lighting A form of ambient lighting, uses one or more luminaires (fixtures) to throw light onto the ceiling and upper walls of a room. This is also called uplighting. Indirect lighting minimizes shadows and reflected glare that bounces off the ceiling Uplighting is particularly useful when using glossy paper or reflective surfaces such as computer or television screens.   Wall Washing Is used to light a vertical surface to an even, consistent brightness. This technique draws the eye to the wall and is often used to accentuate a large piece of art, a dramatic fireplace or an entrance. Wall washing is accomplished by placing luminaires in or on the ceiling or on the floor at regular intervals and is used to help make a room feel larger. You must be careful not to "wash" walls that have windows or mirrors, however, since the lights will reflect off of those surfaces, creating glare and disrupting the uniformity of the light. Since dark surfaces reflect far less light than white surfaces, more light has to be directed onto them to achieve a washed effect. Object or Accent Lighting Accent lighting emphasizes objects by focusing light directly on them. You can create very dramatic effects with accent lighting by using directional luminaires. Be warned, however, that with accent lighting it is easy to overdo it - a room with too much accent lighting may appear disorganized and feel chaotic. Remember that if you light everything, nothing will be highlighted. To increase visual impact, try selecting lamps that focus a narrow beam of light on a small object with a minimum of stray light. Also, if you reduce the ambient light surrounding the accented object or area, you can still create effective highlights and save energy. For the most dramatic and efficient effects, place light-coloured objects on a dark background thereby reducing the output required to light your object and increasing the drama of the presentation. Task Lighting Provides focused light for specific tasks in a room that might also have ambient lighting. Task lighting is especially appropriate for seeing small objects or objects with little contrast. Remember that as people age they require more light to do the same visual tasks they did as younger people. Every room in your home could require some type of task lighting. Look first to the rooms where appliances are used when determining your task lighting needs: the kitchen, study, home office, workshop or project room. A closer look at these and other room-specific lighting needs will mark the first step in a plan for smarter lighting design in your home.