Finding Dark-Sky Compliant Downcast Lighting for Your Development

Your development requires "downcast" (a.k.a. cutoff, shielded, or dark-sky friendly) lighting to minimize light pollution. Retailers rarely label fixtures this way—here's how to find compliant options.

Know the Terminology

• Cutoff / Full Cutoff: Zero light emitted above 90° (horizontal).
• Shielded / Fully Shielded: Optics direct light downward; no uplight.
• BUG Rating: Backlight, Uplight, Glare metrics (IES TM-15). Look for U0 (zero uplight).

Search Strategy

1. Shortlist 4–5 fixtures you like aesthetically from manufacturer catalogs.
2. Print spec sheets showing photometrics (BUG ratings, cutoff classification).
3. Submit to your review committee for approval—they interpret "downcast" for your development.

Manufacturers with Dark-Sky Lines

Residential/Low-Voltage:

• Focus Industries (focusindustries.com)
• Progress Lighting (progresslighting.com)
• Vista Professional (vistapro.com)
• FX Luminaire (fxl.com)
• Unique Lighting (uniquelighting.com)
• In-lite (in-lite.com, Canada)
• Hadco (hadcolighting.com)
• LSI Industries (lsi-industries.com)

Commercial/Heavy-Duty (pole-mounted):

• Sternberg Lighting (sternberglighting.com)
• King Luminaire (kingluminaire.com)

Low-Voltage Advantage

12V systems use lower wattage, don't require an electrician, and offer many shielded path/deck lights. Most manufacturers list "dark sky" or "turtle friendly" filters.

Present options with data; get written approval before purchasing.