First, what do you need light for? Do you do paperwork? Is your desk in your window? You'll be getting afternoon sun. I'm recommending LED lighting to people, but Fred says it has a way to go in brightness and affordability. I recommend sky tubes to homeowners. I've had 2 in one of my houses.

A sliding door is just a big window, and if correctly built in (check if the glass is the correct sized for the door if a bit old) with the correct sized lintels this should not be a big problem as the loads would be transferred to the sides, allowing the door to slide easily. Silicon spray (being a Yachtie were we use this stuff everywhere), we now use silicone spray on all our windows in our 1930 home and the windows glide across with one finger before they used to tilt when trying to open them. I would place the door head up to line up with the others and one thing you might consider is placing a window seat, (rebate the bottom channels into the window seat) and have the window seat in and out, place a cushion over the entire seat, should be fantastic and if the deck is built, than no balustrade is required. If it is a stacker slider, i would do the seat for the entire length. So instead of looking a bit funny they will think it was supposed to be like that. We should all think outside the square more often. RAM

The only problem I see with placing plants anywhere near the steps, if leaves fall and are not cleared away, they will rot and become an eyesore as well as slippery if stepped on. Also it may reduce the space as the plant/s grow, as you use the steps. I think placing screens against the grey wall in a fancy pattern would look nice and is basically maintenance free. I would also paint the steps, maybe in the same shade as the screens, though I would leave the railing as it is closer to the window and you don't want to make it the feature.

Hi, I think this is a perfect solution. With obscure glass you get the light but not the view. This would look fine. Depending on your design of kitchen you could incorporate some art into glass. Obscure or privacy glass is the best option, or you could use frosted film for an economic solution.