Room guide
Hallway lighting
Split a hallway into zones — entrance (welcome), dark straight (comfort), corner (no head shadow), floor (night safety) — then tune Kelvin, CRI and dimming for an even result.
Quick summary
- Dark stretches: often 3500–4000 K plus several sources to avoid pools of shadow.
- Corners: indirect wall light beats a single downlight.
- Floor: discreet skirting or marker lights for night trips.
- High CRI keeps door colours and paint true.
Long narrow hall — avoid the tunnel
- Space luminaires along the length; large gaps create a “spot-spot” rhythm.
- Downlight-only schemes leave walls dark — use wall washers or LED strip behind a cornice.
- Low floor markers improve safety without glare.
Common mistakes
- One ceiling spot: loses the bend and casts facial shadow.
- Too cool a white: feels flat and unwelcoming.
- No dimming: cannot soften light at night.
Lux method: lumens and lux. Motion bulb idea: OSRAM radar E27 (3 m range limit). French detail: couloir page.