Shooting with both eyes open

Ashy Larry

Ten Pointer
Who does this? Just tried it yesterday and it was bull after bull. Almost feels instinctive. Takes a little getting used to but almost calms your release bc you have to focus to keep your eyes focused. Hard to explain but I like it.
 

nchawkeye

Old Mossy Horns
I do, always have, bow or gun, open or scoped...

Now, if you are bassackward on your dominate eye, you will need to close one... :)
 

Longrifle

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I keep both open with the bow, without sights you need them for yardage judgement. I keep left closed with firearms....right eye dominant....
 

LanceR

Six Pointer
Contributor
You've use binocular vision since the first time you opened you eyes. I shoot everything with both eyes open and teach both archery and firearm use with both eyes open.

You don't close one eye to throw a football or cast a line so why do it when shooting......


Lance
 

Tipmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
You don't close one eye to throw a football or cast a line so why do it when shooting......


Lance

The first answer that comes to mind is that you aren't using sights to cast a line or throw a football. The only kind of shooting where I find it useful to use both eyes is wing shooting.
 

Guybo

Eight Pointer
I've always shot both bow and gun with both eyes open. I started my kids off at an early age doing the same thing and they shoot with both eyes open as well. It allows me to see the target better.
 

Triggermortis

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
\Depends on a few things. I don't wear anything but reading glasses, but the modest Rx for glasses that would be optimal for me at distance would blur the pin even more since I am about a quarter diopter myopic with the shooting eye. I have to squint just a little to shoot since my dominant eye is opposite my handedness. I have tried both, and I can shoot either way, but lighting conditions and pin brightness also affect how well you pick up the pin and place it on the target.
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
The only kind of shooting where I find it useful to use both eyes is wing shooting.

The only shooting where I DON'T use both eyes is when I am using high magnification. The other eye is useless then. Other than that, having both eyes open works better for me.
 

Crappie_Hunter

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I guess I'll be the odd ball of the group.... I always close my left eye (right handed shooter). Never tried it flipping a jig under a dock or bush, may have to try it ;)
 

Quackman

Twelve Pointer
The only shooting where I DON'T use both eyes is when I am using high magnification. The other eye is useless then. Other than that, having both eyes open works better for me.

This is exactly the way I am. Any magnification over say 6X or distance over 250 yards I will close my left eye. At really high magnification 15-25X I have trouble seeing through the scope if I don't close my left eye
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Always both open. Some people cant let the dominate eye takeover. Trick is to put a piece of scotch tape over your glasses on your non dominant eye. Forces only one eye to work. Amazing what it can do to shooting. Some olympic shooters still shoot matches with scotchtape.
 

Tipmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Always both open. Some people cant let the dominate eye takeover. Trick is to put a piece of scotch tape over your glasses on your non dominant eye. Forces only one eye to work. Amazing what it can do to shooting. Some olympic shooters still shoot matches with scotchtape.

In purely practical terms, how is this different from just closing the eye?
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
When I shoot my recurve I use both eyes, and I keep them both open when wingshooting. They're both instinctive types of shooting where you "feel" the weapon more than aim it. Just out of habit I close my left eye when shooting compound bows or using my rifles. I've tried shooting my compound, iron sighted rifles and scopes rifles with both eyes open vs one eye and didn't notice any difference in accuracy, but I had to try a little harder to focus on the sight.
 

TravisLH

Old Mossy Horns
In purely practical terms, how is this different from just closing the eye?

Both open even if obscured off eye allows for more rapid focus than when it's closed, with it not being able to see much it keeps the off eye from taking the brains attention from the dominant or shooting eye.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
In purely practical terms, how is this different from just closing the eye?

There are a few reasons. With one eye closed, you are using muscles to hold it closed. When shooting, take as much muscle out of play as possible. With both open, you can run into your eyes fighting to control you vision processing. With the scotch tape, you basically turn one off. It will tell your brain not to process that eye because there is no information to be found. When you do that a while, you figure out how to turn it off without the tape. In a rifle this can be beneficial because you have one eye in a scope and the other out. If somthing changes, you will automatically revert to see what changed. Could be another deer walking out of the woods or something of that nature. With a bow, you are focusing on the target but are still able to see whats happening in your peripherary. Its weird and makes little sense to me, but it works. My left eye is better than my right, but my right is dominate. I can shoot with a bow using a peep and sight while my left eye knows the details of the target better.

With a pistol, it allows peripherary vision.

I know that every shooting sport i have been a part of has been better with two eyes open. I havent done competitive pistol shooting, but i have shot enough of them to see that i would be better with both open. In archery, im clearly better with both eyes. With a rifle its the same.

Using iron sights with a pistol, im significantly better at longer ranges.

So for precision shooting, it takes muscles and your brain out of play to an extent. For close up shooing, it gives you peripherary vision.

Sporting clays are much better for me with both eyes. I can get on a bird im targeting and find the sexond bird of the double much easier.
 
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