Find when a public seat first moves into shade

Note how much of the seat and backrest lies in direct sun at several times. Photograph the surrounding shading objects when possible.

Choose a seat that starts brightly lit and may move into building shade later. Keep notes about people using the space at the level needed to understand the route. A sketch can show where people pause, walk or wait without identifying anyone. Separate the approximate path from a particular event that temporarily reinforced or blocked it and record the time window you observed.

The arm or back can fall into shade before the seat itself becomes comfortable. Give each observation a reference point easy to find from a public route. A visible doorway, a junction or a fixed seat can be more useful than a vague estimate. Write down where you stood and which way you faced so another visit gives you a comparable view.

Draw the approximate boundary of the shade. Broken patches may reveal a tree's influence while a large straight boundary can shift across the seat quickly.

A moving cloud may make the whole seat look briefly shaded. Check how each observation looks on a simple plan. Put durable features on the base drawing and make separate marks for temporary conditions such as parked bicycles, groups or puddles. This gives later notes somewhere to go if a new visit shows an earlier condition was short-lived.

Use nearby brightness to distinguish a cloud pause from a durable shade boundary. Give the observation an approximate extent. A short line can show the interruption of one paving joint, while a wider area may require several notes. Prepare a rough scale from a known object or a measured distance on a safe part of the route if estimating by eye leaves too much uncertainty.

Make a simple timeline with separate marks for the seat and its backrest. End with one practical observation based on the route as used and one point to check again. Include enough scale in the sketch for the reader to judge whether the feature affects a whole block or a narrow section. Take a comparison photograph only where you can stand without obstructing other people.

Bring only the information you can record without disrupting the route. A rough sketch and an image taken from a clear public position can preserve different details. Add the time, direction and landmark as soon as you finish the observation so anyone using the record can connect a feature to its place. Use the next visit to answer a specific question from the first one. Record how the observation itself changed alongside what was different about the site. Two visits taken at different hours can reveal something helpful about use, even when they are too different to support a direct comparison of the layout or surface. On an overcast visit, record shade as uncertain where the boundary cannot be seen. This keeps the record comparable with a day of direct sun. Look back along the route after passing the point you intend to describe. Signs, shadows and obstacles can be clearer from a direction opposite to the one you first chose. Record which viewpoint revealed the detail and keep the earlier view if it explains why a visitor would initially miss it.

Keep a weather note with the time chart so cloud cover does not get mistaken for persistent shade. Name the point at which you move from looking to acting. A visitor might read a sign and then need room to stop, turn or join another route. Mark the space between these moments on the plan. It can reveal a gap that two separate measurements taken at each endpoint do not show.