I have heard both, and I've never thought about it at longer ranges (I think I focus on the target instinctively), but in SB sillywet I find myself wondering while aiming, "do i focus on the dot or on the animal?".......

Something to try
Visualize the reticle superimposed on the spot on the animal where you wish to hit before you shoulder the rifle - maybe as you chamber the round.
When you approach the target with the reticle look for your spot.
You should be increasing pressure on the release stage of the trigger here.
Move the reticle or as Mr. Tubb says "drive the reticle to the spot"
When the actual picture matches what you have visualized the shot
should happen !
I just wish it was that easy

dryfire wrote: When the actual picture matches what you have visualized the shot
should happen !
I just wish it was that easy

Yeah, me too...........

I'm still new, and I have a hard time just relaxing and shooting........my mind races over all the variables and I stay in B land......A when I'm having a good day. I know I don't practice enough, that would be the best thing, but the sight picture question was just one of the variables that has been popping up lately. I thought it interesting that I had heard good shooters say different things regarding the sight picture.

I try to focus on the reticle but IMO I don't think it matters which ou focus on as long as you chose one. Try both and find which is more comfortable or productive

Ken

A cowboy action shooter, "Evil Roy" I believe, said something like "Everytime someone shows big improvement, dry firing was involved". It helps groove in the basics and it is always available. Now, if I just had the personal discipline to do it more...

Last weekend at our local sil. match, I had just finished shooting the pigs and my spotter asked, "Did you see that catepillar?" Apparently there had been a catepillar crawling on one of the pigs when I shot the target. I never saw the catepillar!

Being the humane, animal rights activists that we are , we did search for the wounded catepillar while resetting targets, but he must have had a long ride and we failed to locate him!

BlauBear wrote:A cowboy action shooter, "Evil Roy" I believe, said something like "Everytime someone shows big improvement, dry firing was involved". It helps groove in the basics and it is always available. Now, if I just had the personal discipline to do it more...

Every score in a higher class that I've shot has come at a match where I actually did some dry fire practice the during the previous week. I can't believe I don't do it more.....like its hard to stand in my living room and dry fire at a 10m practice target down the hall or something.

I stand at the line with the gun at ready position and look as far down range as I can. I look at anything far away. It could be a rock or a tree. Anything to make my eyes focus long distance.

I give myself a good 5-10 seconds to think while my eyes adjust. Then I look at the target. As soon as I have focused my attention on the target I want to hit, I bring the gun up, into my field of vision, with both eyes still fixed on the target. As soon as I get my sight picture I'm ready to shoot.

For the next shot, I focus on the next animal right away. I bring the gun up again, into my field of view, look for my sight picture and shoot again.

Repeat until done.

The idea is to keep my vision focused for long distance and not look at anything that will make me focus at short range objects. I have found that, if I don't do it this way, my eyes will get tired very quickly and I'll end up bleary-eyed by the time I have fired 50 rounds. I have had times when my eyes were so tired I had a hard time seeing clearly enough to drive home afterward.

I would say that this is an exercise in concentration for me just as much as it is a practical thing.

Moral of the story: No. I don't look at the scope or the reticle. I look THROUGH the scope at the target.

dryfire wrote:Something to try
Move the reticle or as Mr. Tubb says "drive the reticle to the spot"
When the actual picture matches what you have visualized the shot
should happen !
I just wish it was that easy

Then there's the oops it went off to soon, then there is I was on the target, perfect sight picture and my d^*& finger wouldn't move, then there.... Ahh the heck with it nothing beats practice and making it instinctive shooting. Visulation practices help a great deal, but you still need practice to hold it there and not be bouncing all over the place.

Did I ever tell you how much I HATE a 2 pound trigger????? That ruins more of my shots than my wobbling and bad eyes do anymore.

I attempt to focus on the target but find myself following the bouncing ball, especially when my eyes get weary later in a match. Maybe my dot's too small.
It would be nice to instantaniously release the trigger when the dot hits that pre-visualized spot, but I move around way too much and in the time I attain shooting position, and start to 'fall apart', I may never see it. So, I tend to preload the trigger on what looks like a swing towards the target and let it fly when I see significant white around the dot. (most targets up here are white).