Painting a Scene in Full Sunlight

• 1). Choose the direction of the sun's light. The position the sun is in will dictate how the shadows will look. If the sun is behind the objects in the scene, then the shadows will fall in front of the objects, and if it is in front of the objects, then the shadows will fall behind them. These shadows will be elongated and abstracted forms. When the sun is directly overhead, the shadows will still fall slightly in front of or behind the objects, but are instead shorter and minimal in appearance. Add a small amount of black or gray paint to the existing color of the object or area the shadow is hitting in order to create the effect.
  
  
• 2). Create the appropriate areas of light and dark on objects in the sunlight. The areas of the objects being hit by the light will have much lighter hues than the areas in shadow. If the sunlight is bright enough, then minor details in objects will have a washed out look from the sun's glare. The shadowed areas of an object are darker versions of the colors used to paint the areas bathed in sunlight. Darken these lighter colors by adding a small amount of black or gray paint. The details within an objects shadowed area will be more apparent than those where the light is hitting and will appear more contrasted.
  
  
• 3). Paint a bright glare on all reflective objects facing the sunlight. Windows, mirrors and metallic objects, like cars are a few examples. Other examples are reflective items people in the scene may be wearing, such as eyeglasses and jewelry. Even the eyes of a well-lit face will have a glare from the reflecting light. Any bodies of water in the scene will also have a lot of glare from the bright sunlight. Paint bright spots and rippled areas over the water's surface to create the effect. Sunlight has a bright yellowish-white tone, although the overall tonal quality will also depend upon the color of the object that is reflecting the light.