Q&A: One or Two-Eyed Sight Picture Difference

Hi Gil,

I have been reading up and listening to your podcasts in the Knowledge Vault on the subject of eye dominance and the way you can train the brain to learn to see correctly even if the off eye is stronger! I have a question that applies to me, as I used to shut one eye and now am keeping both open. I would like to know why the target lead looks smaller with both eyes open than one. Relearning them is the hard bit for me.

Simon
UK

Simon,

The world through one eye is really different when your brain is used to binocular input.

With one eye, the targets are perceived as smaller, faster, and farther away. And the lead necessary to hit the targets is as much as half to two-thirds greater than with two eyes. You can see this the next time you are at the range by simply looking at a target with both eyes and then looking at the same target with an eye closed. You’ll see the visual anomaly. 

Everything we do when shooting a moving target with a shotgun occurs in the periphery. What you “see” in the periphery evolves and changes with experience. And in great measure, it’s really different for everyone.

The subject of eye dominance is misunderstood by most shooters and even many instructors. We seldom test for dominance because what we see is a neurological decision by the brain. Visual perceptions are a series of impulses from our senses that the brain recognizes as what we’ve experienced in the past. It knows what’s coming next, which is what experienced shooters interpret as lead.

There is another perception of lead that you’ll eventually stumble into: eventually, all “leads” look the same when the lead is not your primary concern!

Check out these Left to Right Crosser videos from the Clay Target Kill Shots.

Look at the actual lead on the 20-30-40 yard crossers, and notice how similar they all really are. Then look at 50- and 60-yard shots and notice how similar they are. While the 50 to 60-yard crossers have more lead than the 20-30-40-yard crossers, the lead is not nearly as great as what most would think it needed to be. Lead is a perception that occurs in the periphery. The more you experience it, the less awareness of it you will have. This comes from the evolution of the brain understanding what exactly you are asking it to do. The more you do it, the easier it will be for your brain to anticipate where the target will be in the future based on where it’s been, even though you’re seeing it where it is.