Sun Settings and Location in Rhino & Enscape

Setting up the sun and geographic location in Rhino and Enscape helps achieve realistic lighting and accurate shadows based on a real-world location. This guide will walk you through how to configure sun settings and geolocation in both Rhino and Enscape.

Setting Geographic Location in Rhino

Rhino allows you to set a precise location for accurate sunlight positioning.

Open the Sun Panel

Type Sun in the Rhino command line and press Enter.

The Sunlight Settings panel will open.

Enable the Sun

Check the box On to enable Rhino’s sun system.

Set Location

Click Choose Location to open the Geolocation settings.

Select a city from the list or enter specific Latitude & Longitude coordinates for more precision.

Adjust the time zone to match your chosen location.

Adjust Time & Date

Move the Time of Day slider to see how sunlight changes.

Set a specific date to account for seasonal sun variations.

Adjusting Sunlight in Enscape

Once Rhino’s sun settings are configured, Enscape automatically syncs with them. However, Enscape provides additional controls for fine-tuning sunlight and shadows.

Open Enscape Settings

Click Visual Settings in the Enscape toolbar.

Navigate to the Sky & Sun tab.

Enable/Disable Sun Synchronization

Check Use Rhino Sun Position to match the Rhino settings.

Uncheck it if you want to control the sun manually within Enscape.

Adjust Sun Intensity

Increase or decrease sun brightness for stronger or softer lighting.

Use Shadow Sharpness to control how crisp or soft shadows appear.

Manually Change Sun Position in Enscape

While in Enscape’s live render window, hold Shift + Right Mouse Button and drag to adjust the sun’s position dynamically.

You can also use the keyboard shortcut Shift + I or Shift + U to shift the suns location 

This allows real-time changes without altering Rhino’s settings.

Last updated by Abigail Green - February  2025