With irons, focus on target and you see double front posts and pistols. Focus on front posts and you see 2 targets. That's normal if your vision is normal. You have to deal with that if you want to open both eyes while shooting. I think that with both eyes open, focus is naturally on threat so learn to use the sight picture of the dominant eye and try to ignore the other sight picture from the non dominant eye . That takes practice and might fail in stressful situation. Maybe is better to just "point shoot" if target is near enough, if its "far" close one eye and and use sigths.
When I started shooting pistols years ago I closed my non-dominate eye which was taught to me from years of shooting rifles and any other gun as a youth. It was the common practice of the day. Without even looking it up on the internet I tried this method purely out of curiosity and I am way better with a pistol today at most ranges... I'm right eye dominate and right handed.
this video made me understand. i focused on the TARGET with both eyes instead of the sights, and just lined up the sights with my target. the sights are blurry, but since my beretta has a bright red spot on the front sight, i know exactly where my sights are lined up, even when not focused on them, and the sights don't duplicate themselves in my wacky vision. this method worked instantly for me, whereas the method that said to focus on the front sight didn't work for me consistently, no matter how hard i tried. many thanks, mister! 👍
I totally agree. I recently attended a pistol craft course and most the students had red dot on their pistol and man they were a better shooter than me with a traditional iron sights. I told them they were cheating lol
@@ProjectArms4719 they are most definitely cheating lol Removing a red dot and laser site. Their aim will be shit, they rely on the dots rather than experience.
With iron sights you never have to worry about a weak or dead battery or shake awake working, or not. Red dots are great for those who may have vision difficulties but with good vision I would rather quickly pick up the front sight than hunt for the red dot. Iron sights are quicker. Get the right front sight and rely on your training.
Starting at 1:50 he says his shot will dictate his focus. 20 feet and in His primary focus remains on the target while his secondary focus or vision can still pick up the sights for an accurate shot. It seems so many instructors say the focus should always be the front sight but I agree with this teaching. My focus remains on the target too. It works well for me.
Especially with both eyes open! I've found myself much more accurate focusing on the target, and if I focus on the front sight, then both the rear sight and the target doubles in my vision, and that can get confusing if there are identical targets right next to each other.
Technically you still have to slightly shift your focus to iron sights to line up them up, right? If you don’t focus on them at all you’ll never line them up. I’m new to shooting, and I’m genuinely wondering.
I am right hand, left eye dominant. I shoot with both eyes open while shooting right handed. I wasn’t going to learn shooting left handed. I tilt my head slightly to the right and shoot just fine.
As my eyes have gotten older and it is more and more difficult to keep both sights and the target in focus, I now use a new sight picture that is even more effective than my former traditional aiming method. The problem with the traditional sight picture is that it creates an optical illusion in which your eye tries to put both the front and rear sights in the same plane, you tend to squint and only focus with the dominant eye, hides the front sight with the rear sight, goes against the adrenaline fight or flight response to have both eyes wide open, and obscures the lower half of the threat/target. A better way is to have the front sight above the rear sight notch (well above at close range, just above at medium combat range), focus on the threat/target not the sights, both eyes wide open, sight using peripheral vision/secondary focus on the top of the slide, front sight over center of mass torso of the target silhouette, intuitively align with rear sight which is now more 3 dimensional for very accurate windage, point of impact is above front sight in heart/chest area. Sight picture is like a Naval aviator landing on an aircraft carrier. Top of slide is like the deck with shape of deck naturally pointing to target and assisting the sights in intuitive 3 dimensional windage aim. Vertical aim comes with practice. The unloaded (no CO2 cartridge) Glock 19 replica airpistol with resetting trigger is perfect for dryfire practice. Very good at detecting flinching and jerking the trigger. Allows you to watch threat from beltline up, rather than the slide and sights obscuring the lower half of torso. Naturally very accurate with windage aim and surprisingly accurate with vertical point of impact with practice. Works extremely well with adrenaline rush both eyes open, and in fact only works with both eyes open. Works great with all types of sights, but especially well with standard 3 dot sights or standard Glock sights. Don't need an optic!!!! Excels at rapid fire handgun shooting as sight requisition is immediate and intuitive. Especially good as you get older and lose combined near and far focusing ability. Instead of focusing on front sight and blurring rear sight and target, you focus only on the threat as you naturally would when under attack. Very inuitive, just as a pilot during landing have both eyes wide open, using perspective, geometry, and depth perception.
Doug makes some good points. I'm nowhere close to being a competitive shooter, but in the last year I've been shooting with both eyes open (pistol and scoped rifle) and realizing some benefit from it. The human perceptual mechanism is wonderfully adaptive. My brain can integrate the information from both eyes, and that is surprisingly true even when my dominant right eye is looking through a 10X scope at a target 100+ yards away. My brain focuses on what I need to see and disregards the rest until it's needed, at which time it's immediately available. I find I spend less mental energy discarding the information that I don't need than I was spending keeping my non-dominant eye closed. Why deprive my brain of half of the available information?
I used to close an eye for rifles and handguns, but quickly watched videos from pro's and now I almost never close an eye and it feels perfectly normal. Makes a good difference when pivoting side to side while aiming
When shooting with both eyes open you will always have doubled vision. You should clearly see one sight picture is more in focus than the other. The one that is in focus more is the one you should use. For a right handed right eye dominate person its the left one.
I have been training for IPSC for the last couple of years (still a rookie) and from the very beginning they tough me to shoot with both eyes open, the problem was, I'm right handed and left eye dominant, the solution for me was simply tilt my head enough so I can "look" through my left eye while maintaining the other eye open. No problems whatsoever until now, I tried to learn to shoot with my left hand and nop, there's no way I could use my left hand as I do with my right one.
Glad you confirmed my thoughts, left eye dominate and right hand shooter. The change to Left/Left not difficult at all. Dry fire practice drawing from holster to train the muscle memory.
Thanks for the video. I have some comments / questions I'm hoping someone can answer. First, the one eye or two eye shooting depends upon several variables. He mentioned one here where a right handed shooter can be left eye dominant. Another is as a beginning shooter, when I grew up over 40 years ago, everyone I knew was closing one eye to align the sights with the other eye. It was just what we did. And I was an expert rifleman in the Marine Corps with the M-16A2 for four years using one eye, but my MOS did not require qualifying with a 45 (what they used in the 80's). Now that I am about to turn 61, I am looking at purchasing my first hand gun. I have researched several types, revolvers and semi-automatic. When I actually handle a gun, I hold it at arms length, and I am left-handed, left-eye dominant, I close my right eye and align the sights with my left. Dammit, I just saw this video is from 9 years ago. No idea why this popped up today (Feb 2024), and now I have no idea if I'll get any answers. Well, here goes for the main question: How do you actually shoot with two eyes open? I've seen several videos with "how to" in the title, but it is not being shown. They are just like this video, it is talked about, using one or both eyes, and the pros and cons are discussed, but I still have not seem anyone actually demonstrate how to shoot this way.
I've been taught to shoot with one eye closed, but I always wondered why? I could align my sights with both eyes open, since my dominant eye takes over anyway. So I tried shooting with both eyes open and realized that it's much easier - I didn't have to strain my eyelids and frown, leaving me to concentrate on the target instead.
I recently helped my girlfriend figure this out. I was trying to figure out why she could shoot a pistol really good, but she couldn't shoot a rifle, even after some coaching. She tried it left handed and viola! Instant accuracy. I had never met anyone with this issue so I had no idea that was the problem with her lol.
How do you deal with the natural fact that when you have both eyes open and are properly focused on the front sight, the target appears as a double image?
If you're right dominant the 'false' double image will be to the right. Reverse if left. If you're crossed you gotta figure that out bro! But thats what works for me as an open eye right dominant shooter. Ive trained my brain to ignore the false image and if Im just practicing casually and close my left eye and recalibrate using the sights then 99 percent of the time it works out that im on the money. But the truth is if youre after speed and you'll be better off with both eyes open because the target is the focus and not aligning sights.
its kind of hard but once you get really used to two eye shooting you use the left (non dom) eye to get on target and the dom eye should be focused on the front sight. This is especially useful for long range engagements where your'e using an optic but need to switch between targets.
@bkk316. Same here. Maybe he will address our "seeing double" problem. Can't imagine what he could say or come up with that would allow us to keep eyes open.
sporting clays shooter here the most common reason to miss a target is because you didnt focus on the target. of couse this is all done with shotguns so we dont worry about sight alignment. but sometimes a shooter will look at the gun, or the beads on the gun, instead of looking at the target. many of us remove the beads to prevent ourselves from looking at the gun. i dont have much experience with rifles (so please take this advice with a grain of salt), but i just want to say, once you are properly aligned, dont worry too much about sight alignment after. if you practice enough and get good at it, you will maintain sight alignment subconsciously, without having to look at the sights. just look at the target and shoot it. again, i want you to take that advice with a grain of salt, because i am trained with shotguns and have no experience with shooting rifle, but i feel like it may help rifle and pistol shooters who want to try shooting this way. any rifle shooters here who use this method of focus? i dont know how it works for farther targets. sporting clays targets usually arent farther than 80-90 yards. do you keep using target focus, or do you revert to the front sight?
I'm left-eyed dominant...strange right because I'm right-handed? How I learned to shoot with both eyes open is to blink both eyes a few times until the sight and where I was aiming became clear. Now I don't need to blink anymore; just used it as a tool to become used to both eyes open shooting.
I have an issue with my shooting and need to improve. I am nearsighted and wear glasses to see distance (target) but when my glasses are on my sights are out of focus and I have a major issue finding them and trying to line them up with both eyes open (even with one eye...lol.) My S&W M&P has the green fiber optic and I still have issues. Any suggestions I might try?
Okay so I make the triangle with my hands, if I look at the triangle I see two equal distant objects, and if I look at the distant object I see two equal triangles, so which triangle do you look through to see the distant object, the left one or the right? Every test I've done to check for dominant eye hasn't worked, both eyes seem equal. Same thing happens when I try to shoot with both eyes open, if I focus on the front sight I see two targets and if I focus on the target I see two sets of sights.
Look at the distant object with both eyes open while looking through the triangle. slowly move the triangle to your face without losing sight of the object until you are looking though it with just one eye, that will be the dominant eye.
Damn I'm right handed left eye dominant.. I always closed my right eye instinctively and used my left eye to aim, I'm a decent shot but forcing myself to shoot with both eyes open is mind blowing Lol.. now I can see my sight and the target obstructed by my sight and am better able to place my shot. However forcing myself to use my right eye dominantly, I lose the sights easily and have to squint or blink my left eye to get back on target.. It's pretty hard but I think it's easier than trying to shoot left handed Lol.
I don't seem to have a dominant eye. If I focus on something in the distance with my finger pointing at it, the finger is equally visible for both my eyes. Does this give me any kind of advantages/disadvantages?
I'm not a "speed shooter", but hope to be reasonably fast and accurate. I'm left-eyed dominant and right-handed and NOT a beginning shooter. If I open both eyes, I "see" two sight images (if focused on target) or two target images (if focused on front sight). I can do OK shooting left-handed (and closing one eye), but STILL would have this issue! Its an exercise in frustration to have to wink every time I get ready to shoot. Have you any advice, besides poking an eye out?!? ;)
I don’t have a dominant eye. I see two equally focused (actually equally blurry) targets if I look at the front site and two equally focused sights/guns when I look at the target. Since I am right handed, I focus on the target and line up to left sight/gun image which is coming from my right eye. Whatever I’m not focusing on does look somewhat transparent, like I can see through the sight and gun images when I focus on the target. So I keep eyes on the target and put the left sight/gun image on target. No matter what I do there is nothing that allows me to focus on the right or left image more than the other. They look identical. It’s how I had to hunt with a shotgun. Track and focus on the bird, left barrel/sight image was what I put on the bird or led the bird with since that was from my right eye and the gun was shouldered on the right. Made it seem natural to carry that over to pistols when I got older. If someone has a better solution or a better way to do it I’m all ears.
I haven’t shot enough with a handgun, but it’s remarkable how inconsistent I can be. 2-3 shots right in the bullseye, and then without reason I can figure out, the next 10 shots will be 25 degrees off target, so like a miss by 5ft off the target. With a rifle, I can hit 1 foot steels at 200 yards 20-25 in a row nearly as fast as I can pull the trigger with both eyes open. Iron sights in this case.
I can aim alright with 2 eyes at paper targets at range and up close but if I try aiming at tight angles or at doorways, or ex: target half leaning out the side of a cover I get double vision, and get confused, tips or help?
Did anyone find this helpful because I didn't? Of course I drive with both eyes open just like I do when I walk around I'm using a wide field of view. When I'm focusing on a target and sights that's a whole different ball game,much more narrow. What I have noticed is I have two 9mm glocks, one has the Glock night sights the other has Ameriglo night sights with the orange center sight. This pistol is much easier to shoot with both eyes open because the different color gives my eyes something to focus on. Just my 2 cents.
i see your point....get florescent glow in dark paint your favorite colors and toothpick paint your sights! i will help alot.....orange and lime green on white contrast fierce!!❤
I have very little to no depth perception because I am right eye dominant. I have almost no vision; well useful anyway, in my left eye. Really all I have in that eye is just peripheral vision. I can make out basic shapes, objects and color and that's just about it. However, I've been driving just fine and have learned to adapt with this limitation without too much trouble. However, I don't know that I'd get much benefit from shooting with both eyes open.
with 2 eyes we get "double vision" if we focus our eyes on the target. There will appear to be two guns, just choose one mirror image and align the sights and disregard the other mirror image. Alternatively, if you want to aim quickly without using sights but still be relatively accurate, just position your gun in between the two mirror images and disregard the sights
_"Alternatively, if you want to aim quickly without using sights but still be relatively accurate, just position your gun in between the two mirror images and disregard the sights"_ That's actually an interesting idea, gonna have to try that out at the range soon!
I have better than 20/20 in both eyes but, if I try shooting with both open, I just get blur. The very first time I ever shot a gun, my friend said "these are the sights for aiming" I didn't even think, I just closed my left eye, and missed the target. Every time I hold up any firearm, and try to aim with both eyes open, it all gets blurry, I forget to focus on what my dominant eye is seeing, I get pissed off, I close my left eye, and I hit my target. Anybody got any solutions?
Don't focus on the sights at all. Focus on the target, and put the sights over the focused target. You will see two sights, but if you practice this for a little bit, your brain will ignore the sights from your non-dominant eye. You can bring masking tape and put them over your shooting glasses so you train with both eyes open at first.
Stretch out your arms with your pals facing away from you as if you are giving the "Stop!" command to someone with both hands. Rotate in and overlap the hands so that there is a small opening like a triangle, around your index fingers and thumbs. (Think of a diamond pushup with your hands) Look through this aperture with both eyes opened at a small target like a light switch or a photo across the room. Close your left eye. If the target stays in the opening and doesn't move then you are RIGHT eye dominant.The open eye is your dominant eye. If you close your right eye and the target doesn't move then you are LEFT eye dominant. If you close the dominant eye you will find the target gets covered by one of your hands.
@@ADG2988 I did this but the object across the room only shifted left and right, but was still in the triangle. Is it possible for both eyes to be dominant?
A qualified instructor can test you to see which eye is your dominant eye. I am right handed and left eye dominant. I would like to shoot with both eyes open but it’s very difficult. I learned that I was cross-dominant during a shotgun class several years ago. Optics like the Trijicon ACOG do not work as intended for me.
This is interesting.. how about with a scope, a rifle, and do you still shoot with both eyes open without that sight rig? Totally being sincere, here. No sarcasm.. is this just for competitive shooting? Thnx c):~)
I got hit in my dominant eye with a raw egg. Damaged brain tissue behind my eye. Shooting with both eyes has become very difficult because in my vision every thing is 20/20. But right smack in the middle of my vision(in dominant eye) vision morphs together looks like there is a water droplet right in the middle of my eye. I shoot right hand dominant with left eye now, I have to have both open in order to actually see the target. Sucks
With my dad's teaching on shooting growing up, plus with my police training and shooting I always shot with both eyes Open !! 246/247 out of 250 I'm happy with my Shooting !!!
the only thing i can figure opening both eyes does is enhance your situational awareness. it shouldn't affect your shooting. analyze what, exactly, your non-dominant eye is seeing when shooting... when i did this, i saw that it didn't seem to be doing any accounting, whatsoever, for aim and position of the gun.
I don’t know wtf he Talkin about shooting with one eye better then 2 eyes open I don’t care what nobody say never had problems shooting at my targets 💯
My one eye is blury as f its on -0.7. But the other eye is 20/15. And what i meen bye this is that when i aim with bouth eyes i can see the sight clearly and the thing in range. I ges its cinda a win win maby. And dobel vision thos not bother me
bdk316 With both eyes open, you'll see two guns in front of you. Since you're right-eyed, aim with the gun on the left and ignore the gun on the right. Focusing on the target spreads the double image further apart than if you were focusing on the front sight. You can still use the front sight, it just takes more practice. Practice differentiating the left gun from the right gun and always use the left gun.
you use instinct or imagination. your brain does a good job of calculating. similar to throwing strikes in baseball, making baskets, throwing TD's etc.
Do the trick where you look at a distant object and cover it with your thumb to learn which eye is dominant. 1. Close your weak eye, for me it's my left, I'm right eye dominant. 2. Aim at something. Focus your gaze on the target and pay attention to what is in your field of view. 3. Without looking away from your target, maintaining focus on it, open your weak eye. You will now see a "second thumb" off to the side. That's the "false picture." for me, it's "off to the right" This false picture is what you are training yourself to ignore. Practice opening and closing your weak eye while looking at your target. Practice shifting whether your thumb (gun sight) is in focus or the target behind it is in focus. What you are "trying to do" is train yourself to ignore that "false picture" , and to be able to line up the "Good thumb" quickly. When you can focus on a target with both eyes open, hold your thumb over it and know which of the two pictures is gonna be lined up with the target when you close your WEAK eye you will have officially "learned how to aim with both eyes open."
I know whatever Doug is doing is working, because he's a great shooter. However, it's strange that 99% of the people who post videos concerning site picture say focus on the front site. I guess you just have to do what works for you.
I'm still having trouble keeping both eyes open. I have bad vision and I find it hard to keep both my eyes open and acquire my front sights. Just have to keep practicing. I'll try the target focus next time I go out.
You should be able to shoot with both hands anyway if you're training properly. Not that hard to get used to. Just practice dry firing with each hand by themselves, and integrating a support hand will be easy.
Hickok45 shoots right handed but uses his left eye. He explained why he had to change to left eye in one of his videos. Watch how he leans more to the right when shooting both rifles and hand guns. It looks like it works very well for him.
Right. Because that means I'm a nobody who doesn't also have great ideas and thoughts as well, says the guy on the internet to me. You probably live in your close minded world where you think only famous people make the better decisions, and come up with good ways to practice and if it's anything else, it's rubbish. You have NO idea what I do in person. You have no idea about who I am, or my good or bad decisions in my life, and you're on the internet ALREADY assuming I'm basically capable of not coming up with great ideas and you've never even talked to me. Talk about being the stereotypical youtube troll. I can already tell that even though you say I'm "just" a guy, I'm more capable of coming up with better ideas than you; because my idea of a good idea isn't to stereotype me because I'm not DK.
100% disagree. I have vision beyond the perfect 20/20. And two eyes open the barrell is slanted or angled while looking through sites. Its virtually impossible compared to closing one eye. I will never agree with this philosophy.
With irons, focus on target and you see double front posts and pistols. Focus on front posts and you see 2 targets. That's normal if your vision is normal. You have to deal with that if you want to open both eyes while shooting. I think that with both eyes open, focus is naturally on threat so learn to use the sight picture of the dominant eye and try to ignore the other sight picture from the non dominant eye . That takes practice and might fail in stressful situation. Maybe is better to just "point shoot" if target is near enough, if its "far" close one eye and and use sigths.
When I started shooting pistols years ago I closed my non-dominate eye which was taught to me from years of shooting rifles and any other gun as a youth. It was the common practice of the day. Without even looking it up on the internet I tried this method purely out of curiosity and I am way better with a pistol today at most ranges... I'm right eye dominate and right handed.
this video made me understand. i focused on the TARGET with both eyes instead of the sights, and just lined up the sights with my target. the sights are blurry, but since my beretta has a bright red spot on the front sight, i know exactly where my sights are lined up, even when not focused on them, and the sights don't duplicate themselves in my wacky vision. this method worked instantly for me, whereas the method that said to focus on the front sight didn't work for me consistently, no matter how hard i tried.
many thanks, mister! 👍
With red dot, both eyes open, focus on target, no problem..with irons, there is something missing in the teachings...
You can do the same with irons
@@koehler45 yeah but it’s a lot harder, especially if you have astigmatism
I totally agree. I recently attended a pistol craft course and most the students had red dot on their pistol and man they were a better shooter than me with a traditional iron sights. I told them they were cheating lol
@@ProjectArms4719 they are most definitely cheating lol
Removing a red dot and laser site. Their aim will be shit, they rely on the dots rather than experience.
With iron sights you never have to worry about a weak or dead battery or shake awake working, or not. Red dots are great for those who may have vision difficulties but with good vision I would rather quickly pick up the front sight than hunt for the red dot. Iron sights are quicker. Get the right front sight and rely on your training.
Starting at 1:50 he says his shot will dictate his focus. 20 feet and in His primary focus remains on the target while his secondary focus or vision can still pick up the sights for an accurate shot. It seems so many instructors say the focus should always be the front sight but I agree with this teaching. My focus remains on the target too. It works well for me.
Especially with both eyes open! I've found myself much more accurate focusing on the target, and if I focus on the front sight, then both the rear sight and the target doubles in my vision, and that can get confusing if there are identical targets right next to each other.
With 2 eyes open your focus should primarily stay on the target. You will see your sights ghosted out but you can still line them up on target
@@silvioaviles7724 yes, exactly!
Technically you still have to slightly shift your focus to iron sights to line up them up, right? If you don’t focus on them at all you’ll never line them up. I’m new to shooting, and I’m genuinely wondering.
This is absolutely correct, because I went to the range and one eye was always off but two eyes hit accurate Everytime... Thanks for this great Info!
I am right hand, left eye dominant. I shoot with both eyes open while shooting right handed. I wasn’t going to learn shooting left handed. I tilt my head slightly to the right and shoot just fine.
As my eyes have gotten older and it is more and more difficult to keep both sights and the target in focus, I now use a new sight picture that is even more effective than my former traditional aiming method. The problem with the traditional sight picture is that it creates an optical illusion in which your eye tries to put both the front and rear sights in the same plane, you tend to squint and only focus with the dominant eye, hides the front sight with the rear sight, goes against the adrenaline fight or flight response to have both eyes wide open, and obscures the lower half of the threat/target.
A better way is to have the front sight above the rear sight notch (well above at close range, just above at medium combat range), focus on the threat/target not the sights, both eyes wide open, sight using peripheral vision/secondary focus on the top of the slide, front sight over center of mass torso of the target silhouette, intuitively align with rear sight which is now more 3 dimensional for very accurate windage, point of impact is above front sight in heart/chest area.
Sight picture is like a Naval aviator landing on an aircraft carrier. Top of slide is like the deck with shape of deck naturally pointing to target and assisting the sights in intuitive 3 dimensional windage aim. Vertical aim comes with practice. The unloaded (no CO2 cartridge) Glock 19 replica airpistol with resetting trigger is perfect for dryfire practice. Very good at detecting flinching and jerking the trigger. Allows you to watch threat from beltline up, rather than the slide and sights obscuring the lower half of torso. Naturally very accurate with windage aim and surprisingly accurate with vertical point of impact with practice. Works extremely well with adrenaline rush both eyes open, and in fact only works with both eyes open.
Works great with all types of sights, but especially well with standard 3 dot sights or standard Glock sights. Don't need an optic!!!!
Excels at rapid fire handgun shooting as sight requisition is immediate and intuitive. Especially good as you get older and lose combined near and far focusing ability. Instead of focusing on front sight and blurring rear sight and target, you focus only on the threat as you naturally would when under attack. Very inuitive, just as a pilot during landing have both eyes wide open, using perspective, geometry, and depth perception.
Excellent. You answered all of my questions. Thanks.
Doug makes some good points.
I'm nowhere close to being a competitive shooter, but in the last year I've been shooting with both eyes open (pistol and scoped rifle) and realizing some benefit from it. The human perceptual mechanism is wonderfully adaptive. My brain can integrate the information from both eyes, and that is surprisingly true even when my dominant right eye is looking through a 10X scope at a target 100+ yards away. My brain focuses on what I need to see and disregards the rest until it's needed, at which time it's immediately available. I find I spend less mental energy discarding the information that I don't need than I was spending keeping my non-dominant eye closed. Why deprive my brain of half of the available information?
Well said! Our eyes are amazing.
Hi! Do you focus on the target or the sight? When I focus on the sight, the target doubles and can be very confusing...
@Samuel Brice you get a double vision at certain angles I struggle working through this when shooting pistol irons with both eyes open
I used to close an eye for rifles and handguns, but quickly watched videos from pro's and now I almost never close an eye and it feels perfectly normal. Makes a good difference when pivoting side to side while aiming
Hey quick question, when I focus on the target I see my sight/dot or the front of my weapon double. Any things I can do?
When shooting with both eyes open you will always have doubled vision. You should clearly see one sight picture is more in focus than the other. The one that is in focus more is the one you should use. For a right handed right eye dominate person its the left one.
I have been training for IPSC for the last couple of years (still a rookie) and from the very beginning they tough me to shoot with both eyes open, the problem was, I'm right handed and left eye dominant, the solution for me was simply tilt my head enough so I can "look" through my left eye while maintaining the other eye open.
No problems whatsoever until now, I tried to learn to shoot with my left hand and nop, there's no way I could use my left hand as I do with my right one.
Pretty sure hickok45 is left eye dominant, too.
Glad you confirmed my thoughts, left eye dominate and right hand shooter. The change to Left/Left not difficult at all. Dry fire practice drawing from holster to train the muscle memory.
I am left eye, right handed, going to build a left sided holster and give it a try!
Thanks for the video. I have some comments / questions I'm hoping someone can answer.
First, the one eye or two eye shooting depends upon several variables. He mentioned one here where a right handed shooter can be left eye dominant. Another is as a beginning shooter, when I grew up over 40 years ago, everyone I knew was closing one eye to align the sights with the other eye. It was just what we did. And I was an expert rifleman in the Marine Corps with the M-16A2 for four years using one eye, but my MOS did not require qualifying with a 45 (what they used in the 80's).
Now that I am about to turn 61, I am looking at purchasing my first hand gun. I have researched several types, revolvers and semi-automatic. When I actually handle a gun, I hold it at arms length, and I am left-handed, left-eye dominant, I close my right eye and align the sights with my left.
Dammit, I just saw this video is from 9 years ago. No idea why this popped up today (Feb 2024), and now I have no idea if I'll get any answers. Well, here goes for the main question:
How do you actually shoot with two eyes open? I've seen several videos with "how to" in the title, but it is not being shown. They are just like this video, it is talked about, using one or both eyes, and the pros and cons are discussed, but I still have not seem anyone actually demonstrate how to shoot this way.
I've been taught to shoot with one eye closed, but I always wondered why? I could align my sights with both eyes open, since my dominant eye takes over anyway. So I tried shooting with both eyes open and realized that it's much easier - I didn't have to strain my eyelids and frown, leaving me to concentrate on the target instead.
Imagine breaking into a home and you see Doug Koenig in the darkness across the room
I'm left eye dominant. I shoot pistols with my right hand and rifles with my left.
I'm the same.
I recently helped my girlfriend figure this out. I was trying to figure out why she could shoot a pistol really good, but she couldn't shoot a rifle, even after some coaching. She tried it left handed and viola! Instant accuracy. I had never met anyone with this issue so I had no idea that was the problem with her lol.
Same
I'm the same way, I get alot of shit at work Haha. I also shoot a left handed bow, that was weird for a while.
I'm right eye dominant and left handed in general (writing, etc.). I shoot pistols with my left hand, and large guns (rifles, shotungs) with my right.
Do you shoot with both eyes open? Pro shooter Doug Koenig does. He explains why here:
National Shooting Sports Foundation | NSSF i close one eye if I'm shooting something with a scope like a 22.
@@Adam-jz1mx Then change your incorrect habit lol
TIL I'm a left eye dominant and RH shooter. Can't wait to get to the range this week.
What type of gun is this? The whole set up
How do you deal with the natural fact that when you have both eyes open and are properly focused on the front sight, the target appears as a double image?
By focusing on the target and not on the sights 2:04
If you're right dominant the 'false' double image will be to the right. Reverse if left. If you're crossed you gotta figure that out bro! But thats what works for me as an open eye right dominant shooter. Ive trained my brain to ignore the false image and if Im just practicing casually and close my left eye and recalibrate using the sights then 99 percent of the time it works out that im on the money. But the truth is if youre after speed and you'll be better off with both eyes open because the target is the focus and not aligning sights.
@@keepcal but we are taught that to be accurate that focus needs to be on the front site. Front site clear everything else blurry
its kind of hard but once you get really used to two eye shooting you use the left (non dom) eye to get on target and the dom eye should be focused on the front sight. This is especially useful for long range engagements where your'e using an optic but need to switch between targets.
@@Matt-gl5fj bro you just helped me in one second 🤣🤣🤣 double vision gone
I’m right handed and left eye dominant. I will try shooting left handed. Thanks for this video.
Thanks for the tips this will come in handy with the practice for me
Excellent advice from an experienced expert.
Wow, seems like a lot to switch to left handed shooter because I am left eye dominant would it be easier to train eye dominance rather than hand?
@bkk316. Same here. Maybe he will address our "seeing double" problem. Can't imagine what he could say or come up with that would allow us to keep eyes open.
Is there any spot between the Target and the gun
sporting clays shooter here
the most common reason to miss a target is because you didnt focus on the target. of couse this is all done with shotguns so we dont worry about sight alignment. but sometimes a shooter will look at the gun, or the beads on the gun, instead of looking at the target. many of us remove the beads to prevent ourselves from looking at the gun.
i dont have much experience with rifles (so please take this advice with a grain of salt), but i just want to say, once you are properly aligned, dont worry too much about sight alignment after. if you practice enough and get good at it, you will maintain sight alignment subconsciously, without having to look at the sights. just look at the target and shoot it.
again, i want you to take that advice with a grain of salt, because i am trained with shotguns and have no experience with shooting rifle, but i feel like it may help rifle and pistol shooters who want to try shooting this way.
any rifle shooters here who use this method of focus? i dont know how it works for farther targets. sporting clays targets usually arent farther than 80-90 yards. do you keep using target focus, or do you revert to the front sight?
Thank you. This helped a lot.
I'm left-eyed dominant...strange right because I'm right-handed? How I learned to shoot with both eyes open is to blink both eyes a few times until the sight and where I was aiming became clear. Now I don't need to blink anymore; just used it as a tool to become used to both eyes open shooting.
I have an issue with my shooting and need to improve. I am nearsighted and wear glasses to see distance (target) but when my glasses are on my sights are out of focus and I have a major issue finding them and trying to line them up with both eyes open (even with one eye...lol.) My S&W M&P has the green fiber optic and I still have issues. Any suggestions I might try?
if you could train your eye to not shake around, maybe squinting your less dominate eye when using iron sights
Okay so I make the triangle with my hands, if I look at the triangle I see two equal distant objects, and if I look at the distant object I see two equal triangles, so which triangle do you look through to see the distant object, the left one or the right? Every test I've done to check for dominant eye hasn't worked, both eyes seem equal. Same thing happens when I try to shoot with both eyes open, if I focus on the front sight I see two targets and if I focus on the target I see two sets of sights.
Look at the distant object with both eyes open while looking through the triangle. slowly move the triangle to your face without losing sight of the object until you are looking though it with just one eye, that will be the dominant eye.
Damn I'm right handed left eye dominant.. I always closed my right eye instinctively and used my left eye to aim, I'm a decent shot but forcing myself to shoot with both eyes open is mind blowing Lol.. now I can see my sight and the target obstructed by my sight and am better able to place my shot. However forcing myself to use my right eye dominantly, I lose the sights easily and have to squint or blink my left eye to get back on target.. It's pretty hard but I think it's easier than trying to shoot left handed Lol.
Same here. Top results with both eyes open.
I don't seem to have a dominant eye. If I focus on something in the distance with my finger pointing at it, the finger is equally visible for both my eyes. Does this give me any kind of advantages/disadvantages?
But when I use both eyes I start seeing double of everything when I focus in, so what do you do?
I'm not a "speed shooter", but hope to be reasonably fast and accurate. I'm left-eyed dominant and right-handed and NOT a beginning shooter. If I open both eyes, I "see" two sight images (if focused on target) or two target images (if focused on front sight). I can do OK shooting left-handed (and closing one eye), but STILL would have this issue! Its an exercise in frustration to have to wink every time I get ready to shoot. Have you any advice, besides poking an eye out?!? ;)
Some people put tape over the center of their one eyeglass
I don’t have a dominant eye. I see two equally focused (actually equally blurry) targets if I look at the front site and two equally focused sights/guns when I look at the target. Since I am right handed, I focus on the target and line up to left sight/gun image which is coming from my right eye. Whatever I’m not focusing on does look somewhat transparent, like I can see through the sight and gun images when I focus on the target. So I keep eyes on the target and put the left sight/gun image on target. No matter what I do there is nothing that allows me to focus on the right or left image more than the other. They look identical. It’s how I had to hunt with a shotgun. Track and focus on the bird, left barrel/sight image was what I put on the bird or led the bird with since that was from my right eye and the gun was shouldered on the right. Made it seem natural to carry that over to pistols when I got older. If someone has a better solution or a better way to do it I’m all ears.
I haven’t shot enough with a handgun, but it’s remarkable how inconsistent I can be. 2-3 shots right in the bullseye, and then without reason I can figure out, the next 10 shots will be 25 degrees off target, so like a miss by 5ft off the target.
With a rifle, I can hit 1 foot steels at 200 yards 20-25 in a row nearly as fast as I can pull the trigger with both eyes open. Iron sights in this case.
Could be your trigger finger.
I mildly squint my left eye just a smidge helps me focus quicker
Is possible to shoot without blinking?
I can aim alright with 2 eyes at paper targets at range and up close but if I try aiming at tight angles or at doorways, or ex: target half leaning out the side of a cover I get double vision, and get confused, tips or help?
Keep practicing on these targets with dry firing at home. Don't wait to go to the range to practice.
Did anyone find this helpful because I didn't? Of course I drive with both eyes open just like I do when I walk around I'm using a wide field of view. When I'm focusing on a target and sights that's a whole different ball game,much more narrow. What I have noticed is I have two 9mm glocks, one has the Glock night sights the other has Ameriglo night sights with the orange center sight. This pistol is much easier to shoot with both eyes open because the different color gives my eyes something to focus on. Just my 2 cents.
i see your point....get florescent glow in dark paint your favorite colors and toothpick paint your sights! i will help alot.....orange and lime green on white contrast fierce!!❤
I have very little to no depth perception because I am right eye dominant. I have almost no vision; well useful anyway, in my left eye. Really all I have in that eye is just peripheral vision. I can make out basic shapes, objects and color and that's just about it. However, I've been driving just fine and have learned to adapt with this limitation without too much trouble. However, I don't know that I'd get much benefit from shooting with both eyes open.
Excellent, priceless info, Doug, thank you so much!
with 2 eyes we get "double vision" if we focus our eyes on the target. There will appear to be two guns, just choose one mirror image and align the sights and disregard the other mirror image. Alternatively, if you want to aim quickly without using sights but still be relatively accurate, just position your gun in between the two mirror images and disregard the sights
_"Alternatively, if you want to aim quickly without using sights but still be relatively accurate, just position your gun in between the two mirror images and disregard the sights"_
That's actually an interesting idea, gonna have to try that out at the range soon!
I have better than 20/20 in both eyes but, if I try shooting with both open, I just get blur.
The very first time I ever shot a gun, my friend said "these are the sights for aiming"
I didn't even think, I just closed my left eye, and missed the target.
Every time I hold up any firearm, and try to aim with both eyes open, it all gets blurry, I forget to focus on what my dominant eye is seeing, I get pissed off, I close my left eye, and I hit my target.
Anybody got any solutions?
Don't focus on the sights at all. Focus on the target, and put the sights over the focused target. You will see two sights, but if you practice this for a little bit, your brain will ignore the sights from your non-dominant eye. You can bring masking tape and put them over your shooting glasses so you train with both eyes open at first.
This explains the ‘why’, but not the ‘how’😖
How can you tell which is your dominant eye?
Stretch out your arms with your pals facing away from you as if you are giving the "Stop!" command to someone with both hands. Rotate in and overlap the hands so that there is a small opening like a triangle, around your index fingers and thumbs. (Think of a diamond pushup with your hands) Look through this aperture with both eyes opened at a small target like a light switch or a photo across the room. Close your left eye. If the target stays in the opening and doesn't move then you are RIGHT eye dominant.The open eye is your dominant eye. If you close your right eye and the target doesn't move then you are LEFT eye dominant. If you close the dominant eye you will find the target gets covered by one of your hands.
Thank you ADG2988 I was so confused when someone else explained this to me but fallowing your direction I was able to see I'm left eye dominant
@@ADG2988
I did this but the object across the room only shifted left and right, but was still in the triangle. Is it possible for both eyes to be dominant?
A qualified instructor can test you to see which eye is your dominant eye. I am right handed and left eye dominant. I would like to shoot with both eyes open but it’s very difficult. I learned that I was cross-dominant during a shotgun class several years ago. Optics like the Trijicon ACOG do not work as intended for me.
This is interesting.. how about with a scope, a rifle, and do you still shoot with both eyes open without that sight rig? Totally being sincere, here. No sarcasm.. is this just for competitive shooting? Thnx c):~)
irons work best with dominant eye
Bro I have to close my left dominant eye or it's not smooth shooting
Just a wink and I'm good
My left eye keeps blurring to create one eye shooting i wonder if this is normal 🤔
Switching left hand sounds like a really bad idea
Ani relationship with Ervin Koenig?
I’m just asking, since he was a top notch world class sharpshooter.
I got hit in my dominant eye with a raw egg. Damaged brain tissue behind my eye. Shooting with both eyes has become very difficult because in my vision every thing is 20/20. But right smack in the middle of my vision(in dominant eye) vision morphs together looks like there is a water droplet right in the middle of my eye.
I shoot right hand dominant with left eye now, I have to have both open in order to actually see the target.
Sucks
With my dad's teaching on shooting growing up, plus with my police training and shooting I always shot with both eyes Open !! 246/247 out of 250 I'm happy with my Shooting !!!
the only thing i can figure opening both eyes does is enhance your situational awareness. it shouldn't affect your shooting.
analyze what, exactly, your non-dominant eye is seeing when shooting... when i did this, i saw that it didn't seem to be doing any accounting, whatsoever, for aim and position of the gun.
What you you are missing 1 eye?
I have a pistol. It feels natural to keep both eyes open.
I don’t know wtf he Talkin about shooting with one eye better then 2 eyes open I don’t care what nobody say never had problems shooting at my targets 💯
My one eye is blury as f its on -0.7. But the other eye is 20/15. And what i meen bye this is that when i aim with bouth eyes i can see the sight clearly and the thing in range. I ges its cinda a win win maby. And dobel vision thos not bother me
1:18 dun dun, dun dun, dun dun... Oh make me over. It's perfect.
Aw thank God..... after reading some of these comments, I realize I’m not alone.
huh? I see double of whatever isn't in focus how do you know your going to hit what you want to hit when you "see" two of them?
bdk316 sounds like you're focusing on the front sight. try looking at your target.
Cae Woogabooganachooga Ive been taught to focus on front sight with my dominant eye(right) which I used to be opposite...
bdk316 With both eyes open, you'll see two guns in front of you. Since you're right-eyed, aim with the gun on the left and ignore the gun on the right. Focusing on the target spreads the double image further apart than if you were focusing on the front sight. You can still use the front sight, it just takes more practice. Practice differentiating the left gun from the right gun and always use the left gun.
The secret with both eyes open is if you focus on the target you will see two sets of sights aim between those two sights
You explain WHY but not HOW to shoot with both eyes open. This is almost click bait
you use instinct or imagination. your brain does a good job of calculating. similar to throwing strikes in baseball, making baskets, throwing TD's etc.
Do the trick where you look at a distant object and cover it with your thumb to learn which eye is dominant.
1. Close your weak eye, for me it's my left, I'm right eye dominant.
2. Aim at something. Focus your gaze on the target and pay attention to what is in your field of view.
3. Without looking away from your target, maintaining focus on it, open your weak eye.
You will now see a "second thumb" off to the side. That's the "false picture." for me, it's "off to the right"
This false picture is what you are training yourself to ignore.
Practice opening and closing your weak eye while looking at your target. Practice shifting whether your thumb (gun sight) is in focus or the target behind it is in focus.
What you are "trying to do" is train yourself to ignore that "false picture" , and to be able to line up the "Good thumb" quickly.
When you can focus on a target with both eyes open, hold your thumb over it and know which of the two pictures is gonna be lined up with the target when you close your WEAK eye you will have officially "learned how to aim with both eyes open."
So I've been lied to. I should focus at the target not the front iron sight
This dude just told me to shoot left handed because I’m cross eye dominant..
Maybe i shpuld start shooting left handed then im going to begin practicing.
So...
Accuracy, 1 eye.
Speed, 2 eyes.
This guy is high.
The secret with both eyes open is if you focus on the target you will see two sets of sights and aim between those two sights!
Fawk 😂 I’m right hand left eye left foot dominant 😂
For some reason I can only shoot with both eyes if I raise my right eyebrow 😂
The peoples shooter
@@songoku3848 😂😂🤣 that's pretty good.
🤨
I know whatever Doug is doing is working, because he's a great shooter. However, it's strange that 99% of the people who post videos concerning site picture say focus on the front site. I guess you just have to do what works for you.
There's multiple types of sight pictures people who shoot USPSA/IPSC. It's faster to use a target focus if you're able to
I'm still having trouble keeping both eyes open. I have bad vision and I find it hard to keep both my eyes open and acquire my front sights. Just have to keep practicing. I'll try the target focus next time I go out.
I shoot both eyes open with my pistol, no matter it has red dot or iron sights.
Uh oh. I'm left eye dominant but I'm a right handed shooter. No way in hell am I gonna get proficient using my left side.
Why not?
It just doesn't feel natural to me.
Just shoot right handed, but bring the sights to your left eye. I am also cross dominant
Why in the world would you need to switch hands just bc your right hand dominate & left eye dominate? Just move the gun a couple inches to the left.
1:35 you couldn’t be more wrong
Shooting rabbits on the move with a Ruger single six 22 with no front sight both eyes open. Point, shoot, pray.
I'm not going to shoot with my left hand. There most be another way.
David Edmon Jr. same
David Edmon Jr. if your right handed left eye dominant try turning your head to the right a little so your left eye is lined up with the pistol.
You should be able to shoot with both hands anyway if you're training properly. Not that hard to get used to.
Just practice dry firing with each hand by themselves, and integrating a support hand will be easy.
Hickok45 shoots right handed but uses his left eye. He explained why he had to change to left eye in one of his videos. Watch how he leans more to the right when shooting both rifles and hand guns. It looks like it works very well for him.
He might survive the corona apocalypse
Do you aslo shoot snipers with both eyes open too lol?
You can take a newbie and give them a pistol with a red dot and tuned trigger and they can shoot well…..
Pov: ur tryna master a nerf gun at shooting on target
Godd
I can make the first shot, both eyes open, using irons...I just can't make followup shots...
I see double when looking at somthing that close.. anyone else?
At 1:46, did he have an accidental discharge? Sounds like it.
No. The source of the audio on the video changed.
Yeah, you hear whoever is slowly drilling away nearby on his narration
I get double vision. No thanks.
Bro installed aimbot💀
I need glasses bad fuck lol I’m only 25 feel like that’s too young but fuck it I knew it was coming
Their may be people who shoot better with one verses 2
He didn't even talk about the most important reason to shoot with two eyes open..
Right. Because that means I'm a nobody who doesn't also have great ideas and thoughts as well, says the guy on the internet to me. You probably live in your close minded world where you think only famous people make the better decisions, and come up with good ways to practice and if it's anything else, it's rubbish. You have NO idea what I do in person. You have no idea about who I am, or my good or bad decisions in my life, and you're on the internet ALREADY assuming I'm basically capable of not coming up with great ideas and you've never even talked to me. Talk about being the stereotypical youtube troll. I can already tell that even though you say I'm "just" a guy, I'm more capable of coming up with better ideas than you; because my idea of a good idea isn't to stereotype me because I'm not DK.
Jamesta James tl;dr
100% disagree. I have vision beyond the perfect 20/20. And two eyes open the barrell is slanted or angled while looking through sites. Its virtually impossible compared to closing one eye. I will never agree with this philosophy.
These are the type of videos you would see on the quiet kid's browser history
This guy doesn't even know how to pronounce his own last name .... WTF?
Absolutely useless information