Hydrogen-1 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to study water allocation in cell compartments of sun and shade leaves. NMR spectra of Acer platanoides were resolved into two peaks that were assigned to chloroplast and nonchloroplast water. Sun leaves contained 1.7 times more water per unit area of surface than shade leaves, and the water was allocated differently. Chloroplasts in sun leaves contained 17% of the total leaf water versus 47% in shade leaves. Comparing equal leaf surface areas, the chloroplasts in shade leaves contained 60% more water than those in sun leaves.