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What Is Lighting, Really?
When we think of lighting, most of us think of one basic function: to provide enough illumination so we can see. Flip a switch, light fills a room, simple. But actually it goes far beyond illumination. It's not just about making things visible. It shapes how we feel, how we function, and how we experience a space. It supports safety, enhances comfort, influences mood, and can even boost productivity. In other words, lighting is one of the most subtle yet powerful design tools we have. More Than Meets the Eye At its core, lighting enables visibility. But have you ever walked into a room that felt instantly warm, calming, or energising, and you couldn’t quite put your finger on why? Lighting plays a massive part in this. Let’s think of a familiar scenario at home. You’re preparing for friends to come over for dinner. Bright, crisp task lighting is essential when chopping vegetables or reading the recipe. But, as the evening comes and your friends arrive, you switch to softer, warmer ambient lighting and suddenly the space becomes more inviting and relaxed. The atmosphere you can create just by changing the lighting is entirely different. Lighting as Atmosphere The psychology of light is well understood by designers, even if it’s not always noticed by the end user. In restaurants, retail spaces, hotels, and even hospitals, lighting is used to create mood and manage experience. A luxury hotel lobby often features layered lighting: soft wall sconces, warm-toned table lamps, and subtle uplighting. Together, they convey elegance, comfort, and calm. Meanwhile, a high-end retail store may use spotlighting – such as the Touch Mini G2 or Streamer Mini spotlight, designed for precise, high-impact accent lighting - to draw attention to key products, making them feel more exclusive and desirable. The Touch Mini G2 offers full adjustability, narrow or medium beams, and dimming compatibility, ideal for retail, hospitality, or gallery settings where flexibility is key. The Streamer Mini delivers a clean, glare-controlled beam with a deep-recessed design, perfect for highlighting products or creating contrast. Both combine performance with minimal visual presence, making them powerful tools for layered, detail-driven lighting design. Lighting as Safety Outside of aesthetics, lighting plays a critical role in safety. On a dark stairwell or a poorly lit street, good lighting reduces accidents and discourages crime. It provides a sense of security in public spaces and helps people move confidently through their environments, even at night. Fagerhult’s Citygrid is a smart, wireless outdoor lighting control system designed to enhance both safety and sustainability. Using passive infrared (PIR) motion sensors, it keeps areas lit at low levels when unoccupied, but automatically increases brightness when someone enters - be that on roads, bike paths, parking areas, or pedestrian zones - creating a sense of security exactly when and where it's needed. Lighting as Comfort and Function Lighting also affects our sense of comfort and our ability to perform day-to-day tasks. Poor lighting can lead to fatigue, headaches, or decreased productivity. On the other hand, well-designed lighting - balanced, glare-free, and appropriate to the space - helps reduce eye strain, supports wellbeing and performance. Let’s consider a few different environments: In offices, for instance, the right combination of natural light and artificial light helps keep focus high and screen glare low. In classrooms, dynamic lighting systems can be used to support alertness in the morning and calm in the afternoon. In healthcare, precision lighting helps clinicians perform procedures safely and accurately. A well-lit space isn't just easier to navigate, it's more comfortable to be in. And this goes deeper than most people realise. Lighting Controls In offices and commercial workspaces, traditional lighting design has often defaulted to uniform brightness across open-plan areas. But today, we know that a more nuanced, zone-based approach is far more effective. Different areas of the workplace have different requirements – think task zones, breakout areas, and collaborative spaces to name a few - and the lighting should reflect that. This concept of functional comfort recognises that lighting should support the activity, not just meet minimum standards. For example: Cooler, brighter lights in desk areas promote alertness and clarity. Warmer tones in breakout spaces encourage creativity, relaxation, and informal conversation. Adjustable lighting in meeting rooms helps adapt to different formats, from presentations to brainstorming sessions. Moreover, modern lighting systems allow you to vary light output within identical fittings, adapting to usage patterns, time of day, or occupancy levels. This not only improves the user experience, it supports sustainability goals and reduces energy bills. Fagerhult’s Organic Response delivers adaptable, scalable lighting control designed for workplaces and learning environments. The system is fully customisable to suit any lighting solution and centralises control in one intuitive platform. From the moment it's installed, it reduces energy consumption by up to 40%, with every additional configuration enhancing efficiency, lighting quality, and technical performance. Lighting as Brand and Identity Beyond function and comfort, lighting is also a branding tool. Think of a tech company headquarters with sleek linear LEDs integrated into architectural features, giving the space a cutting-edge, future-focused feel. Or a boutique law firm that opts for warm, indirect lighting in meeting rooms to create a sense of calm, confidentiality, and trust. In each case, lighting isn’t just helping people see and perform tasks, it’s helping them feel something, and remember the space and brand because of it. A Living Element of Design Ultimately, lighting is dynamic. It changes with time of day, function, and mood. It adapts to human needs and preferences, and enhances the character and purpose of a space in ways that are hard to measure, but easy to feel. So, the next time you switch on a light, take a moment to notice more than just brightness and ask yourself: What is this lighting really doing? Is it helping me focus? Making me feel at ease? Guiding my way? Because lighting is about so much more than just seeing.
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Creating Human-Centric Workspaces with Double Dynamic Lighting
Lighting transcends its traditional role of mere illumination in modern, evolving work environments. Of course, providing the right light in the right places is still the core function, but it has also become a pivotal element in enhancing employee well-being, satisfaction, and productivity. Yet, a significant portion of the workforce remains dissatisfied with their current lighting conditions. A 2024 study by Ipsosrevealed that 32% of UK office workers are unhappy with their lighting, highlighting the need for increasingly innovative solutions. While another 2022 study by IEOM Society International found that 85% of employees strongly prefer natural light to be the dominant source of illumination in offices, and over 82% believe that access to natural light directly enhances their alertness, concentration, and productivity. This area was addressed by the groundbreaking Double Dynamic Lighting (DDL) study carried out, in collaboration with Fagerhult, at Aalborg University in Copenhagen. The results - by harmonising artificial lighting with natural daylight, and creating daylight-like effects, DDL creates dynamic, responsive environments that cater to human psychological needs, positively influencing visual comfort, naturalness, stimulation and leading to positive outcomes related to work engagement, motivation and concentration. Understanding Double Dynamic lighting (DDL) Double Dynamic Lighting is a design approach that integrates both direct and diffuse lighting, with colour temperature adapting in real-time to natural daylight variations. This method aims to replicate some of the characteristics and dynamic qualities of natural light within indoor spaces, enhancing the overall ambiance and functionality of the workplace. It’s not only about illumination levels but about creating lighting conditions that feel right to people. This includes changes in colour temperature over time and the balance between diffuse and focused light, both of which can have a significant psychological impact on how a space is perceived and experienced. Key features of DDL include: Dynamic adaptation: Lighting adjusts in response to external daylight conditions, ensuring optimal lighting conditions throughout the day. Enhanced visual comfort: The combination of direct and diffuse lighting helps deliver daylight-like effects, creating a comfortable visual environment. Work engagement, motivation and concentration: natural feeling, daylight-like effects delivered by DDL lead to positive psychological outcomes in the workplace. The research conducted at Aalborg University demonstrated that DDL positively influences employees' mood, concentration, and overall work engagement. Participants reported a more pleasant atmosphere and increased motivation when working under DDL conditions compared to static lighting setups. Going forward, Double Dynamic Lighting setups may also help us deliver better biological alignment in workplaces in line with the growing knowledge that human circadian rhythms can be positively supported by workplace lighting, potentially helping alertness during the day, relaxation in the evening, and deliver important health benefits. The science behind DDL The effectiveness of DDL lies in its ability to mimic the natural characteristics and progression of daylight. By adjusting colour temperatures, light intensities and the balance of direct and diffuse sources, DDL creates a dynamic environment that helps deliver natural-feeling workplaces. DDL's real-time responsiveness ensures that indoor lighting complements outdoor conditions. Whether the day is overcast, sunny, or anything in between, DDL can adjust the fundamental characteristics of indoor lighting to help provide lighting conditions that are, to all intents and purposes, naturally expected. Steve Shackleton, Lighting Application Manager at Fagerhult UK comments: “Human beings actually prefer daylight. We migrate to it if we get the chance. Double Dynamic Lighting lets you recreate just a bit of that, but it’s enough to completely change how a space feels. Try it. The effect is quite magical.” Implementing DDL in modern workspaces Fagerhult's DDL is not just a theoretical concept, it's a practical solution already enhancing workplaces worldwide. By integrating advanced sensors and control systems, DDL seamlessly adjusts lighting conditions to suit various tasks and activities. Key components of a DDL-enabled workspace include: Sensor Integration: Occupancy and daylight sensors monitor environmental conditions, informing lighting adjustments. Personalised Control: Employees can customise lighting settings to their preferences, enhancing comfort and productivity. Energy Efficiency: By closely aligning artificial lighting with natural daylight and the needs and whereabouts of building occupants, DDL can reduce energy consumption and support sustainability goals. Fagerhult's Control Track Versa system exemplifies this integration, offering modular lighting solutions that adapt to changing workspace needs. With features like adjustable luminaires and integrated sensors, it provides both flexibility and efficiency. Benefits beyond illumination Daylight-like lighting benefits extend beyond improved lighting conditions: Increased productivity: Comfortable and adaptable lighting environments can boost focus and efficiency. Sustainability: Optimised lighting and control reduce energy consumption, contributing to environmental conservation efforts. Employee satisfaction: Providing personal control over personal lighting preferences can lead to higher job satisfaction and retention rates. Enhanced well-being: Taken to its optimum, by aligning lighting with natural circadian rhythms, DDL can help support mental and physical health. One barrier to wider adoption is cost, though Steve is quick to challenge assumptions: “In the grand scheme of things, the benefits widely outweigh the costs. It’s not like the old days where tunable white lighting was double the cost. Today, we’re talking perhaps 20-30% extra. Not a great deal in a world where, as the BCO puts it, ‘it is becoming increasingly clear that there is a difference between office environments that are simply not harmful - that is the absence of bad - and environments that positively encourage health and wellbeing and stimulate productivity’”. He also points out the deeper value of the investment: “If you’re building a space for people and you know what helps them feel and perform better, can you justify not including it? Is it even sustainable NOT to include it?” Putting people first As workplaces shift to becoming more people-centric to meet the expectations of modern employees, lighting solutions must do the same. Fagerhult’s approach to Double Dynamic Lighting prioritises occupants and human well-being, as well as environmental sustainability and operational performance. By embracing DDL, organisations can transform their environments into dynamic, human-centric spaces that inspire, engage, and support. And it’s not just office workers who can benefit. In retail environments, where access to natural light is often limited by infrastructure, employees may spend 8–9 hours a day without any daylight exposure. DDL could help replicate the dynamic qualities of daylight, promoting a natural feeling environment, for better mood and comfort throughout the day. Similarly, in education settings, where focus, concentration, and cognitive performance are critical, DDL could create optimised, more stimulating classrooms that support both students and teachers. From corporate HQs to classrooms, and retail back-of-house to deep-plan floorplates, DDL isn’t just a lighting upgrade, it’s a shift toward environments that put people first.
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