Eye dominance madness
#11
YES YES YES. This is exactly me. So I guess I don't have a dominant eye. The blinking trick does it!, and yeap exactly that, when I am holding rifle with my right hand, my head tilts a little to the right and left eye takes over. But if I blink the left, boom, right one takes over. Thanks!!! let me know if you have any other tips.
I was going to mention that in my previous post, but thought it was a little out there, apparently not that far out there.
A decent optometrist could likely fix that, shooting glasses with a slight correction. If you don't normally wear glasses, you should be wearing shooting glasses anyway.
#12
Eye dominance, or lack thereof in our case, is not an eye problem - if you call it a problem - it's all in your brain.
The only way glasses can "fix" the issue of having the wrong eye running the show is to obscure one lens. I suppose a guy could put a lens in the off eye which didn't completely obscure it, but made that eye out-of-focus such the brain would switch to the other eye, but it's not a long term solution.
I'd rather blink or slightly squint to switch dominance rather than have my vision obscured or blurred in one eye.
#13
I've talked to my eye doctor a bit about it over the years, and done a bit of research myself - there's nothing glasses/lenses can do to "fix" off-eye dominance.
Eye dominance, or lack thereof in our case, is not an eye problem - if you call it a problem - it's all in your brain.
The only way glasses can "fix" the issue of having the wrong eye running the show is to obscure one lens. I suppose a guy could put a lens in the off eye which didn't completely obscure it, but made that eye out-of-focus such the brain would switch to the other eye, but it's not a long term solution.
I'd rather blink or slightly squint to switch dominance rather than have my vision obscured or blurred in one eye.
Eye dominance, or lack thereof in our case, is not an eye problem - if you call it a problem - it's all in your brain.
The only way glasses can "fix" the issue of having the wrong eye running the show is to obscure one lens. I suppose a guy could put a lens in the off eye which didn't completely obscure it, but made that eye out-of-focus such the brain would switch to the other eye, but it's not a long term solution.
I'd rather blink or slightly squint to switch dominance rather than have my vision obscured or blurred in one eye.
Just an idea, there is likely to be more than one solution. Trial and error will likely find the best solution. If the easiest doesn't work, move on to the more complex.
#14
I've been interested in eye dominance for about 18yrs. It's a brain issue, not an eye issue. Glasses don't change the way your brain is wired.
I hadn't ever thought to try that, so I actually just tested this 1 eye magnifier theory to see if it would work. I have a couple monocle leups for carving and engraving, putting it in my right eye didn't help bring my focus to that eye when looking left (where I'm left eye dominant) through a right hand shouldered rifle scope. It's not so different than looking through a scope - I adjusted my diopter to bring the scope into focus, just as it was without the Leup. After 20min wearing the leup, no change. My left eye was still my primary focus when I shouldered the rifle.
Reflex to move your head to make bifocals work is a different thing. You don't intentionally squint to see better, you just squint. You don't intentionally dilate or constrict your pupils to see better, it just happens. Even when your eyes are perfectly focused, your brain decides which eye is the dominant image signal and which one is used for supplementation.
Here's how eye dominance works, and why changing magnification won't change how it works: Think about taking two pictures with the same camera of the same objects, from 2 different positions - First picture in a fixed position, then the next picture after sliding the camera over to one side about 3ft. Both pictures are in focus. Your job is now to cut apart one picture and tape it to the other to make a single picture with a larger field of view. You as the photo editor have to pick one photo to cut and one to leave alone. THAT DECISION is eye dominance. Your brain picks which photo gets cut, and which one is the primary. Even if one is a little out of focus, or a little zoomed in, your brain will still pick ONE picture as the primary, and the other picture is only used to fill in the field and enhance detail and depth.
So putting a magnifier in front of one eye is like taking one picture with the zoom at 2x and one with the zoom at 1x. If you, as the photo editing "brain," decide you're going to use the first picture as the primary, then THAT will be the rule every time. If you pick the picture taken from the left over the right, then THAT will be the rule every time. Your brain will fight to superimpose the images of different scales - so now you as the photo editor picked your 2x zoomed photo as the primary, and have to take your other picture zoom it to scale, and THEN tape it together... But which photo you as the editor - aka, the brain - chooses as the primary stays the same.
A fun one for you - there are glasses out there which invert up and down. Wear a pair for about a day continuously and your brain will actually flip the image so when you wake up, the world will appear right side up again. When you take them off, it takes about an hour to un-do that re-wiring in your brain. So even though it temporarily adapted to the new lenses, things go back to "normal" in your brain really fast, and they won't re-wire any faster next time if you put the glasses back on. It's not something which happens in seconds - it takes a long time.
And again - I've never personally considered it a problem - I consider it an advantage. Don't even honestly notice I do anything, whether I blink or slightly squint to change which eye is leading the show. I shoot with both eyes open, but I do have to blink - when shooting right handed to swap from the field to the sights. Doesn't take any longer than the eye movement you make when changing your focus from the downfield game to your nearfield scope or sights. Looking for a solution is kinda making a mountain out of a molehill.
I hadn't ever thought to try that, so I actually just tested this 1 eye magnifier theory to see if it would work. I have a couple monocle leups for carving and engraving, putting it in my right eye didn't help bring my focus to that eye when looking left (where I'm left eye dominant) through a right hand shouldered rifle scope. It's not so different than looking through a scope - I adjusted my diopter to bring the scope into focus, just as it was without the Leup. After 20min wearing the leup, no change. My left eye was still my primary focus when I shouldered the rifle.
Reflex to move your head to make bifocals work is a different thing. You don't intentionally squint to see better, you just squint. You don't intentionally dilate or constrict your pupils to see better, it just happens. Even when your eyes are perfectly focused, your brain decides which eye is the dominant image signal and which one is used for supplementation.
Here's how eye dominance works, and why changing magnification won't change how it works: Think about taking two pictures with the same camera of the same objects, from 2 different positions - First picture in a fixed position, then the next picture after sliding the camera over to one side about 3ft. Both pictures are in focus. Your job is now to cut apart one picture and tape it to the other to make a single picture with a larger field of view. You as the photo editor have to pick one photo to cut and one to leave alone. THAT DECISION is eye dominance. Your brain picks which photo gets cut, and which one is the primary. Even if one is a little out of focus, or a little zoomed in, your brain will still pick ONE picture as the primary, and the other picture is only used to fill in the field and enhance detail and depth.
So putting a magnifier in front of one eye is like taking one picture with the zoom at 2x and one with the zoom at 1x. If you, as the photo editing "brain," decide you're going to use the first picture as the primary, then THAT will be the rule every time. If you pick the picture taken from the left over the right, then THAT will be the rule every time. Your brain will fight to superimpose the images of different scales - so now you as the photo editor picked your 2x zoomed photo as the primary, and have to take your other picture zoom it to scale, and THEN tape it together... But which photo you as the editor - aka, the brain - chooses as the primary stays the same.
A fun one for you - there are glasses out there which invert up and down. Wear a pair for about a day continuously and your brain will actually flip the image so when you wake up, the world will appear right side up again. When you take them off, it takes about an hour to un-do that re-wiring in your brain. So even though it temporarily adapted to the new lenses, things go back to "normal" in your brain really fast, and they won't re-wire any faster next time if you put the glasses back on. It's not something which happens in seconds - it takes a long time.
And again - I've never personally considered it a problem - I consider it an advantage. Don't even honestly notice I do anything, whether I blink or slightly squint to change which eye is leading the show. I shoot with both eyes open, but I do have to blink - when shooting right handed to swap from the field to the sights. Doesn't take any longer than the eye movement you make when changing your focus from the downfield game to your nearfield scope or sights. Looking for a solution is kinda making a mountain out of a molehill.
Last edited by Nomercy448; 09-09-2016 at 10:14 AM.
#15
Thanx for the insight, I just hope during my next trip to the range I don't concentrate so much on what my eyes are dong I can't hit squat.
I was born a lefty and forced to change to a righty, my guess is it was the policy in early schooling in my age group for awhile. I honestly think that is the reason I was dyslexic. My younger brother (4 years younger) same school and they left him a lefty, didn't try to change him..
The vision in my right has always been a little better than the left. I guess I'm right dominant, I shoot right hand, right eye, rifle, shotgun and pistol (mostly). But I seem to have no real issues switching hands and aiming eye. Maybe I blink and never really noticed? I have noticed I tend to squint my non aiming eye a little.
Interesting, if you find any more info or links please share.
Chuck
I was born a lefty and forced to change to a righty, my guess is it was the policy in early schooling in my age group for awhile. I honestly think that is the reason I was dyslexic. My younger brother (4 years younger) same school and they left him a lefty, didn't try to change him..
The vision in my right has always been a little better than the left. I guess I'm right dominant, I shoot right hand, right eye, rifle, shotgun and pistol (mostly). But I seem to have no real issues switching hands and aiming eye. Maybe I blink and never really noticed? I have noticed I tend to squint my non aiming eye a little.
Interesting, if you find any more info or links please share.
Chuck
#16
There must be a lot of us out there like that. I'm the same way. I shoot a bow right handed and and firearms left handed. I don't have any trouble with either eye.
Over the years, shooting left handed, I can recall at least 3 times where I had deer sneak in on my left side and I shot them right handed with my rifle.
Over the years, shooting left handed, I can recall at least 3 times where I had deer sneak in on my left side and I shot them right handed with my rifle.
#17
I'm sort of ambidextrous and yet solid left eye dominant - ain't no way around it.
Archery - lefty
Shotgun - lefty
Rifle - lefty
Handgun - lefty, but was trained/re-trained to be ambi, both eyes open. *
* I must be a freak of nature.... If I hold my 1911 .45ACP lefty, my left eye takes over. If I switch positions and my stance, and shoot righty, my right eye takes over.
With archery, I have to shoot lefty, lefty eye open, right eye closed. If I try shooting both eyes open, I see two targets or I see two sets of sight pins. Same with my shotgun. I see two targets or two beads/barrels. With my rifle, it doesn't matter as I have a Bushnell 3-9x40 scope and can shoot that both eyes open, lefty, with my left eye lined up in the scope tube.
Archery - lefty
Shotgun - lefty
Rifle - lefty
Handgun - lefty, but was trained/re-trained to be ambi, both eyes open. *
* I must be a freak of nature.... If I hold my 1911 .45ACP lefty, my left eye takes over. If I switch positions and my stance, and shoot righty, my right eye takes over.
With archery, I have to shoot lefty, lefty eye open, right eye closed. If I try shooting both eyes open, I see two targets or I see two sets of sight pins. Same with my shotgun. I see two targets or two beads/barrels. With my rifle, it doesn't matter as I have a Bushnell 3-9x40 scope and can shoot that both eyes open, lefty, with my left eye lined up in the scope tube.
#18
I guess I'm one of the lucky ones -- I'm right handed and my right eye is dominant. As I shoot way more shotgun shells than rifle and pistol shells, I have taught myself to shoot with both eyes open regardless of what gun I am shooting, be it scoped rifle, pistol, or shotgun.
As a "range officer" at our local gun club, I've been involved with helping many shooters with opposite eye dominance.
The simplest way to correct opposite eye dominance for shooting is to put a small (1/4") spot of frosted (Scotch) tape on the dominant eye lens of the shooters glasses.
The spot of tape allows the shooter to use their dominant eye for peripheral vision, but blocks that eye from seeing the gun's front sight, so the other eye will take over to see that sight.
As a "range officer" at our local gun club, I've been involved with helping many shooters with opposite eye dominance.
The simplest way to correct opposite eye dominance for shooting is to put a small (1/4") spot of frosted (Scotch) tape on the dominant eye lens of the shooters glasses.
The spot of tape allows the shooter to use their dominant eye for peripheral vision, but blocks that eye from seeing the gun's front sight, so the other eye will take over to see that sight.
#19
I guess I'm one of the lucky ones -- I'm right handed and my right eye is dominant. As I shoot way more shotgun shells than rifle and pistol shells, I have taught myself to shoot with both eyes open regardless of what gun I am shooting, be it scoped rifle, pistol, or shotgun.
As a "range officer" at our local gun club, I've been involved with helping many shooters with opposite eye dominance.
The simplest way to correct opposite eye dominance for shooting is to put a small (1/4") spot of frosted (Scotch) tape on the dominant eye lens of the shooters glasses.
The spot of tape allows the shooter to use their dominant eye for peripheral vision, but blocks that eye from seeing the gun's front sight, so the other eye will take over to see that sight.
As a "range officer" at our local gun club, I've been involved with helping many shooters with opposite eye dominance.
The simplest way to correct opposite eye dominance for shooting is to put a small (1/4") spot of frosted (Scotch) tape on the dominant eye lens of the shooters glasses.
The spot of tape allows the shooter to use their dominant eye for peripheral vision, but blocks that eye from seeing the gun's front sight, so the other eye will take over to see that sight.
X2
I believe that to be true !!!