The following procedure affects the current environment only.

1. Select Appearance > Environment Light and Shadows.

   The Environment Light and Shadows dialog box appears.

   
2. To enable environment shadows, select Cast shadows.
3. To enable environment illumination, select Sun light. Click the color box to adjust sun light color.
4. Use the properties in this dialog box to fine-tune the look of the lights and shadows in the current environment. See The Environment Light and Shadows dialog box.

To apply shadows:

1. Press V to open the Visual Styles interface.
2. Under Realistic, click the Ambient Shadows or Both Shadows and Ambient Shadows icon.

   Shadows are displayed in the scene as configured in the Environment Light and Shadows dialog box.

   NoteUse the Realistic visual styles to turn shadows on or off. The abstract visual styles maintain the shadows settings.
3. Adjust or change the type of ambient shadows you want, as described in the following sections:
   • Preview (default): Uses Screen-Space Ambient Occlusion (SSAO) to calculate ambient shadows quickly. See Set up Preview (instant-on) ambient shadows.
   • Baked: Provides better quality but requires time to pre-calculate (bake) the ambient shadows. See Set up Baked ambient shadows.