Using a simple light-use efficiency model based on optical measurements, we explored spatial patterns of photosynthetic activity in fertilized and unfertilized sunflower stands. The model had two components: (1) absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR), and (2) radiation-use efficiency. APAR was the product of photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and leaf absorptance, which was derived from leaf reflectance. Radiation-use efficiency was either assumed to be constant or allowed to vary linearly with the photochemical reflectance index (PRI), a measure of xanthophyll cycle pigment activity. When efficiency was assumed to be constant, the model overestimated photosynthetic rates in upper canopy layers exposed to direct PPFD, particularly in the unfertilized canopy due to the greater photosynthetic downregulation associated with higher levels of photoprotective (de-epoxidized) xanthophyll cycle pigments in these conditions. When efficiency was allowed to vary according to the PRI, modeled photosynthetic rates closely matched measured rates for all canopy layers in both treatments. These results illustrate the importance of considering reduced radiation-use efficiency due to photosynthetic downregulation when modeling photosynthesis from reflectance, and illustrate the potential for detecting radiation-use efficiency through leaf optical properties. At least under the conditions of this study, these results also suggest that xanthophyll cycle pigment activity and net carbon uptake are coordinately regulated, allowing assays of Photosystem II activity to reveal changing rates of net assimilation. Because the optical methods in this study are adaptable to multiple spatial scales (leaf to landscape), this approach may provide a scalable model for estimating photosynthetic rates independently from flux measurements.