Along with shading, lighting control has become an enormous part of contemporary residential design. It cleans away wall acne, lets the homeowner arrive in style and depart with ease, and centralizes control across every fixture with their varying intricacies for optimal effect.

As it turns out, and much to the chagrin of all involved (homeowner, architect, lighting designer, technology integrator), it’s a real challenge to pull this off correctly.

The complexity of lighting design has created a gauntlet of potential headaches. The right performance depends on compatibility across several variables for every circuit: Fixture, driver, wiring, dimming module… One oversight in any element can prevent lights from dimming smoothly—or at all. Poor design could lead to the bottom 10 percent of dimming cutting off completely, or your lights flickering. If you have been on a project site you have likely seen when this goes wrong. It is a nightmare.

There is no single manufacturer that covers all bases. Applications, interface, and aesthetic preferences all vary. We’ve spent the last few years building our “dream team” of solutions covering entry-level products, warm dim, tunable white, circadian, high CRI, indoor, and outdoor lighting.

Lutron provides the broadest and most stable backbone (and user interface) for both commercial and residential applications. Most circumstances tend to be a fit for their Homeworks QS or RadioRA2 platforms. They also offer fixtures. Their entry-level Finiré series (don’t worry, nobody else can pronounce it either) offers 3-inch and 4-inch recessed lights with warm dimming—“Cool white” at full brightness and “warm white” at lower levels.

Early last year Lutron acquired Ketra, which brought products capable of tunable white and circadian rhythm. This technology allows white light to span the full spectrum and do so at the same color temperature and cadence as the sun. The lighting system knows your location on the globe using latitude and longitude, current season, and time of day. It is, hands-down, the most impressive demo you will ever see.

It’s difficult to predict where technology integration will be in 10 years, but if the recent past is any indicator, the days of helping with installation alone are gone. Lighting technology is just one example of rapid evolution. Along with it comes the need for more insightful guidance through the growing landscape of options.