From first conversation
to finished landscape
Great landscape design isn't rushed
At Fink Garden Studios, every project moves through a clear, considered process — one designed to protect your investment, honor your vision, and produce an outdoor space that performs beautifully for decades.
Our process is built around your vision
.01 The Consult
where every design begins
Before anything is measured, drawn, or specified, we sit down and listen.
Our complimentary consultation is the foundation of everything that follows. We visit your property, walk the space with you, and spend time genuinely understanding how you want to live outdoors — what you want to feel when you step outside, where you want to gather, what isn't working about your current space, and what you've always imagined it could become.
In this first meeting we align on site objectives, aesthetic direction, lifestyle preferences, phasing, and budget. We ask questions most designers never think to ask — because a landscape designed around how you actually live is fundamentally different from one designed around how a site looks on paper.
This consultation is complimentary and carries no obligation. We simply believe every great design begins with a great conversation.
What you receive
A clear shared understanding of your goals, priorities, and the scope of what's possible — and a defined path forward into the design process.
.02 Site Analysis
Understanding the land
before we design it
Great landscape design is inseparable from a deep understanding of the specific site it inhabits.
Before a concept is drawn, we conduct a thorough site analysis — documenting everything the land is telling us. This includes topography and soil conditions, drainage patterns, sun and shade across the day and seasons, microclimates, prevailing winds, existing vegetation and habitat value, structures and utilities, access and circulation, views worth preserving, noise worth screening, and any applicable codes or easements.
We also study the broader landform and surrounding context — because a landscape that truly grounds a home in its environment requires understanding how that environment works beyond the property line.
For Rochester and Finger Lakes properties, site analysis is particularly important. Upstate New York's freeze-thaw cycles, clay-heavy soils, lake-effect light patterns, and dramatic seasonal shifts all have direct consequences for how a landscape is designed, planted, and built. We take none of this for granted.
What you receive
A comprehensive understanding of your site's opportunities and constraints — the analytical foundation that makes every subsequent design decision more intelligent and more durable.
.03 Concept Design
translating your vision into testable landscape strategies
This is where possibility becomes form — where your goals and your site's conditions meet for the first time on paper.
The concept design phase translates everything we've learned — from the consultation and the site analysis — into clear, explorable landscape strategies. We work through flow and circulation, spatial layouts and massing, and the definition of distinct zones for gathering, play, cooking, planting, and quiet.
At this stage we work primarily in hand sketches and simple visuals. This is deliberate. Early concept work should be loose enough to invite conversation, revision, and creative exploration — not polished to the point where it feels too finished to question. We want you to engage with the ideas, push back on what doesn't feel right, and help us refine what does.
The concept phase concludes when we have alignment on direction — when the spatial logic, the aesthetic feel, and the overall vision are confirmed before we invest the time and detail of formal design.
What you receive
Hand sketches and concept visuals that give you a genuine window into the intended look, feel, and spatial logic of your future landscape — along with a collaborative review meeting to confirm direction before moving forward.
.04 Formal Design
a fully coordinated, build-ready landscape package
The formal design phase is where vision becomes a document — precise, coordinated, and ready to build from.
Building directly from the approved concept, the formal design transforms your landscape vision into a complete, professionally produced design package. Every element is resolved and coordinated: grading and drainage, hardscape geometry and material specifications, walls, steps and structures, detailed planting design, accessories and finishes, irrigation, and lighting and power.
We confirm constructability, verify budget alignment, and address any permitting requirements specific to your municipality or HOA. For Rochester-area projects this often includes stormwater considerations, setback requirements, and — for our lakefront and Finger Lakes clients — shoreline regulations.
The formal design is presented in an in-person meeting, complete with final renderings, so that you can see your landscape fully realized before anything is built. We walk through every element together, answer every question, and confirm any final refinements before moving into the revision and documentation phase.
What you receive
A complete, professionally produced landscape design package — full-scale drawings, planting plans, material specifications, renderings, and a transparent project quote covering scope, phasing, and costs.
.05 Revisions
getting every detail exactly right
Two complimentary revision rounds are included with every Fink Garden Studios design — because precision matters and your confidence in the outcome matters more.
Once the formal design is presented, we include up to two complimentary revision rounds to fine-tune every element to your satisfaction. Layout adjustments, planting substitutions, material changes, lighting refinements, grading modifications — anything that brings the design into closer alignment with your vision is addressed in this phase.
Each revision round includes a brief review meeting to ensure we are interpreting your feedback correctly and that the evolving design continues to work as a cohesive whole — aesthetically, technically, and within budget.
We do not treat revisions as an inconvenience. They are a sign that the collaborative process is working — that you are engaged, that the design is being held to a high standard, and that the outcome will be something you are genuinely proud of.
Should additional revisions be needed beyond the two complimentary rounds, these can be accommodated for a transparent additional fee.
What you receive
A refined, finalized design that you have reviewed, questioned, and approved — one you can move into construction with complete confidence.
.06 Install Coordination
Ensuring the design is built exactly as designed
A beautiful design is only as good as its execution. Install coordination is how we protect yours.
Install coordination is the bridge between design and construction — the phase where we ensure that everything resolved on paper is faithfully realized in the ground. We remain actively involved throughout the construction process so that nothing is lost in translation between our drawings and your contractor's work.
Our install coordination includes leading the preconstruction kickoff meeting, managing approvals and material submissions, approving material samples and field mockups, coordinating plant procurement — including tagging, sourcing, and managing substitutions when needed — and conducting milestone site visits to verify layout, grades, and construction quality in the field.
When unforeseen conditions arise — as they inevitably do in any construction project — we are present to resolve them quickly and intelligently, keeping the design intent intact and the project on track.
At completion we meet with you on site to confirm the finished landscape meets and exceeds your expectations. And we return for a follow-up site visit one year after installation — to assess how the landscape is establishing, address any concerns, and ensure your investment is performing exactly as designed.
What you receive
Active design oversight throughout construction, a completion walkthrough, and a one-year post-install follow-up visit — so your landscape is protected from the first shovel to its first full season.