---
title: "Lighting Early, Lighting Smart: Avoiding the Hidden Costs in Architecture"
description: "Lighting Matters Episode 23: The Hidden Cost of Bad Lighting: An Architect's Perspective"
image: https://blog.morlights.com/hubfs/social-suggested-images/IMG20241121170013.jpg
---

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## Lighting Early, Lighting Smart: Avoiding the Hidden Costs in Architecture

[Admin](https://blog.morlights.com/morlights-blog/author/admin)

 Oct 27, 2025 9:25:08 AM

Bad lighting doesn’t just dull a room — it drains value from the entire design process. In this episode of the *Lighting Matters* podcast, hosted by Morlights CEO, Avraham "Avi" Mor, and co-host, Lisa J. Reed, CEO of Reed Burkett Lighting Design, they welcome Perkins + Will Managing Director, **Margaret Cavenagh,** who shares how lighting decisions made too late—or without the right expertise—can quietly erode budgets, function, and the emotional experience of space.

“Lighting is architecture,” she says. “When it’s an afterthought, everything else pays the price.”

Cavenagh describes projects where smart, early lighting integration saved thousands and created environments that simply worked *better*. One example: swapping a $5,000 fixture for an $800 alternative that delivered the same visual impact, saving the client $250,000 overall. The lesson? Great lighting design isn’t about spending more; it’s about incorporating it into your thinking from the start. 

Good lighting supports flexibility, comfort, and long-term maintenance. Bad lighting, on the other hand, locks projects into compromises that cost far more than a line item in the budget.

For Cavenagh, success starts with collaboration: bringing architects, designers, and lighting specialists to the same table, early and often. Because when the lighting is right, everything else has room to shine.

[Listen to the whole episode here. ](https://lightingmatterspodcast.com/episodes/episode-23-the-hidden-cost-of-bad-lighting-an-architects-perspective)

![](https://episodes.castos.com/66889601ede0f5-02583431/images/2135430/c1a-6r61m-ww823d03b7r7-9sm5dm.png)

 

## Read On

### [Long-Term Lighting Success Lighting plays a tremendous role in our first impressions of a space and the magical moments that...](https://blog.morlights.com/morlights-blog/blog/view/keys-to-designing-lighting-for-long-term-success)

### [City of Light: The History of Lighting in St. Louis **On the occasion of Morlights heading to St. Louis for the 2025 Building Museums Symposium, we're...**](https://blog.morlights.com/morlights-blog/city-of-light-the-history-of-lighting-in-st.-louis)

### [Achieving Chef-Inspired Restaurant Lighting | Morlights When it comes to our favorite restaurants, there’s one thing we can all agree on – positive dining...](https://blog.morlights.com/morlights-blog/blog/view/achieving-chef-inspired-restaurant-lighting)

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