ONE EYE OR TWO

StalkingKent

Well-Known Member
Hi All,
Is there any reason or advantage why some shooters keep both eyes open when aiming through their scope. I have seen this many times including in pictures of magazines.

I have always kept one eye closed for rifle sports and both open for shotgun. Can anyone please shed more light on this for me please?

Many Thanks
 
Hi P C

I myself and also my shooting partner have always shot our rifles both eyes open, I think this mostly stems from the fact that we both started our rifle shooting careers at night on foxes and rabbits. We find that in keeping the left eye open it helps you to aquire the position and distance of say a rabbit in tall stubble as invariably it is often easier to pick out the reflection of the eye by not using the scope but at the same time you don't want to be lifting your head off the stock and losing it's general position. So in a way we change our eye dominance as is needed.
I've never actually shot with one eye closed but this may be a lot to do with a lot of shotgun shooting too!

JT
 
My eye dominance changed from right to left, which means in my case if I do not want to be shooting behind all the time with a shotgun I have to close my left eye, or shoot left handed. It is the same with a rifle, if I shoot right handed, close my left eye, if I shoot left handed both eyes open. :eek:

There obviously will be a scientific reason for this, but all I know is this is the way it is with me.

John
 
My feeling is if you can shoot with both eyes open then do it. I'm right handed, but shoot off my left shoulder as the sight in my right eye is very poor. I can still see a bit through my bad eye, so why not leave it open?
With the shotgun it gives me a better perception of range, whilst with the rifle it gives me peripheral vision. This has allerted me to both the arrival of deer, just before taking the shot, and the arrival of ramblers likewise. With that eye shut I might have missed a shot at both! :lol:
 
Fran has big probs shooting a shotgun because of eye dominance problems however ask Wadas she is an eagle eye with a rifle :lol:
 
I shoot both shotgun and rifle with my left eye closed. Here`s an example ;)

And yes, Fran is a great shot, 100 mtr right in the middle of the bull with the second shot. I Should have let her shoot legals bins :lol:

wadas
 
One eye open on Rifle and both open on Shotgun....although sometimes with a shotgun they could both just as well be closed as I would hit as much!!
 
eyes

left handed but shoot right, left eye c--p,right eye pritty good ;)
with shotgun both eyes open ,left eye closed with rifle :confused:
i have come to the conclusion im better off with both eyes shut :oops:
JayJay
 
buckup said:
My feeling is if you can shoot with both eyes open then do it. I'm right handed, but shoot off my left shoulder as the sight in my right eye is very poor. I can still see a bit through my bad eye, so why not leave it open?
With the shotgun it gives me a better perception of range, whilst with the rifle it gives me peripheral vision. This has allerted me to both the arrival of deer, just before taking the shot, and the arrival of ramblers likewise. With that eye shut I might have missed a shot at both! :lol:

I am really pleased to have found someone like "buckup" who keeps both eyes open. I initially thought that there would be some technical reason unknown to myself for this. I will give it a try on my range just to see if there is any differance with both eyes open. It will certanly feel strange.
 
Oddly I was going to say that also Wadas :lol: but didn't want to embarras you mate .. you know me always the considerate one :D
 
During my handgun competition time............. :evil: ................I was always told to keep both eyes open. If you close one eye it seems the other pupil enlarges and supposedly makes aiming/focussing over front and rear sights, looking at a target, more difficult. I now to shoot with both eyes open at all times. There must be more info out there on this. Cheers, Rene.
 
I think the reason that they are in pictures with both eyes open is because they are posing for a photo and not about to shoot the rifle. :rolleyes:
 
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