Which eye do you shoot with?

[aalbert]

Right handed, shoot right eye most of the time, but switch hit to the left eye if my right eye contact lens is acting up, or when shooting sports with action coming from the right / natural body position favors left eye (leave both eyes open very often - habit from shooting pistols in competition). Switch hitting doesn't really bother me....

 

[iMagic]

Right handed but left eye dominant. Does that make me a freak?

 

[J.R.]

Right eye ... With the left open usually surveying the scene

 

[Hobby Shooter]

Left eye, I'm right handed though. I live in a tropical country currently and the LCD ends up messy from my oversized nose. I have found that I close my right eye while framing, but just as I push the button I often open my right eye. Not sure why.

 

[DArora]

Right eye.

 

[Rienzphotoz]

This topic got me to try using the left eye ... but it is no fun. How do you "lefties" manage? I mean, looking through the VF with my left eye almost makes it impossible to see anything with my right eye (unless I lift my head) ... But using my right eye, I can still see at least 80% of the VF view with my left eye, without raising my head.

 

[Hillsilly]

Left eye. And I'm right handed. I understand the benefits of using the right eye, but it just doesn't work for me.

My natural tendency is to close my right eye. But if I do this too much, I end up with a sore eyes and a headache. Ultimately, the view from both eyes won't align for a period of time. No idea why. I have to consciously will myself to keep both eyes open.

 

[Michaels]

I am left handed, I shoot camera's with my right eye and leave the left one open. When hunting, I shoot with my left eye and close the right one...go figure.

 

[Rienzphotoz]

I am left handed, I shoot camera's with my right eye and leave the left one open. When hunting, I shoot with my left eye and close the right one...go figure.

Can you please repeat that

 

[docholliday]

Both/either. Habit I picked up from years of shooting with a Hasselblad and waist level finder - and large format with loupes...right handed, but can also use left

 

[J.R.]

I guess the biggest trick here is to start shooting with both eyes open. Most people find it disconcerting and avoid it but once you figure it out, using either eye is easy and it becomes a simple matter of choice.

Personally, I use the left only if I'm having trouble with the contact lens in my right eye. I find the right eye more suitable because the left is free to survey the scene.

People shooting with the left ... do you find any advantage with it or are you doing it only by instinct?

 

[Kathode-Ray]

I'm mostly right and a bit left handed. I have a mouse at each side of my computer keyboard, I use the one on the left the most. The right one is for 'normal' people

I use my left eye for the VF. I wear glasses and I use the EP-EX15 eyepiece extender, works very well!

Avoids some smearing of the LCD as well

 

[RGF]

Right eye though at time I keep my left eye open

 

[dstppy]

Shoot with left eye . . . literally.

Used to drive my grandfather crazy that I'd pull up a .22 and rock my head across it to aim (right-handed).

Do the same with the camera now that I think about it.

As for 2-eyes vs 1-eye, only shoot with the right one open if I'm trying to track something.

 

[kubelik]

Shoot with left eye . . . literally.

Used to drive my grandfather crazy that I'd pull up a .22 and rock my head across it to aim (right-handed).

Do the same with the camera now that I think about it.

As for 2-eyes vs 1-eye, only shoot with the right one open if I'm trying to track something.

just curious, do you still shoot like that? even though I'm right handed I've just gotten used to shooting left handed so my eye (and head and neck) doesn't have to be in a weird position. frankly, I've found the handed-ness of firearm operation not a big deal (it is annoying with the bolt on the wrong side, but I guess I don't shoot for speed so it's not been an issue)

 

[gkaefer]

left handed, right eye dominant. using the right eye for VF with left eye open. the grip of my cam is on right side so I cant imagine doing the same the other ways round, because then the grip with my Hand is closer to my nose too....

 

[cervantes]

Left eye when shooting in landscape orientation (so that the nose doesn't touch the display) right eye when shooting in portrait orientation (same reason). Sounds complicated but works very well after you get used to it.

 

[sandymandy]

Using my right eye cuz the scotoma in my left eye is too big. Right eye scotoma is smaller

 

[mrsfotografie]

I ran a poll on another photo forum on the subject of which eye was used, and it was near enough 50/50. I also asked about handedness, where the results were within line with the general population whatever that ratio was. Obviously the two are not tied together.

Interesting. I shoot with the left, which is my best eye. I'm right handed.

Left eye. I'm heavily left eye dominant but right handed. Works for cameras but not too much for that other type of shooting

Not the only good reason to stick to camera's

 

[mrsfotografie]

Left eye. And I'm right handed. I understand the benefits of using the right eye, but it just doesn't work for me.

My natural tendency is to close my right eye. But if I do this too much, I end up with a sore eyes and a headache. Ultimately, the view from both eyes won't align for a period of time. No idea why. I have to consciously will myself to keep both eyes open.

This problem I had, too. Until I switched from a 40D to full-frame 5D MkII. The 7D has enough viewfinder magnification that it almost appears as a FF viewfinder, so no problem there.