PeterHenry Posted January 22, 2022 Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 (edited) Hi All, I was out trying to flight ducks this evening (not something I've much experiance at admittedly) and found that I clean missed every bird - some of which should have been very straight forward shots..... I've noticed it before when decoying pigeons in the summer as the light dips in an evening as well. Does anyone have any tips or do I just need better eyes? Edited January 22, 2022 by PeterHenry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spr1985 Posted January 22, 2022 Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 I don’t have much experience either but I call it shooting at shadows, always worth remembering that due to the low light it’s likely closer than you think….I learnt that very quickly and started converting shots to kills Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted January 22, 2022 Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 Hello, get some yellow tinted shooting glasses, good in low light like roost shooting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fellside Posted January 22, 2022 Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 19 minutes ago, PeterHenry said: Hi All, I was out trying to flight ducks this evening (not something I've much experiance at admittedly) and found that I clean missed every bird - some of which should have been very straight forward shots..... I've noticed it before when decoying pigeons in the summer as the light dips in an evening as well. Does anyone have any tips or do I just need better eyes? Hi Peter, There is sometimes a tendency to catch the gun in your primary vision during low light - i.e look at the gun. Easy to do now and then even for experienced duck chasers. All I can suggest is stare at the birds head, really focus. You do get used to it after a while….well mostly…?! If it’s any consolation, I’ve known some good game shots struggle with evening ducks, if they aren’t used to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stonepark Posted January 22, 2022 Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 Gun fit is important as you are shooting instinctively as the focus is on the target, and you can't correct your mount as easily as shooting in daylight when barrels are more visible. If you are struggling, it might be worth using a glow in the dark bead so that you can see your muzzle in your peripheral vision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterHenry Posted January 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2022 2 hours ago, Spr1985 said: I don’t have much experience either but I call it shooting at shadows, always worth remembering that due to the low light it’s likely closer than you think….I learnt that very quickly and started converting shots to kills Cheers - I'll deffinatly keep that in mind. 2 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said: Hello, get some yellow tinted shooting glasses, good in low light like roost shooting Thanks - good to know. 1 hour ago, Fellside said: Hi Peter, There is sometimes a tendency to catch the gun in your primary vision during low light - i.e look at the gun. Easy to do now and then even for experienced duck chasers. All I can suggest is stare at the birds head, really focus. You do get used to it after a while….well mostly…?! If it’s any consolation, I’ve known some good game shots struggle with evening ducks, if they aren’t used to it. I think that might be it - my short barrelled side by side wouldent have been helping things either on that count. 1 hour ago, Stonepark said: Gun fit is important as you are shooting instinctively as the focus is on the target, and you can't correct your mount as easily as shooting in daylight when barrels are more visible. If you are struggling, it might be worth using a glow in the dark bead so that you can see your muzzle in your peripheral vision. Thanks - thats a good suggestion. I know the gun fits and I use it to shoot walked up snipe no problem. I think it may well be a new type of shooting that I just need to get use to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalkedUp Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 If you can see the ducks just keep practicing. I do not think glow in the dark beads would help, but rather hinder by increasing the contrast and decreasing the perceptibility of the duck. You do not need to see your gun, you should know where it is. You need to train your eyes for the dark. Never use a torch, your phone screen or any artificial means of illumination whilst you are out. I run cross country in the dark each morning, that probably helps keep my eyes sharp in low light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuke Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 1 hour ago, WalkedUp said: You need to train your eyes for the dark. You mean prepare your eyes? You can't train them to improve the contrast from app 1/10 compared to full light. Age, smoking, medication etc may effects can reduce it even more. /Markus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 (edited) Yellow glasses, practice and training/preparing your eyes will all help. BUT, there is no quick fix. Edited January 23, 2022 by TIGHTCHOKE Spellage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalkedUp Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 14 minutes ago, Nuke said: You mean prepare your eyes? You can't train them to improve the contrast from app 1/10 compared to full light. Age, smoking, medication etc may effects can reduce it even more. /Markus Hi Markus, Of course you can train your eyes for the dark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalkedUp Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 Going out now but will expand on this later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 Some evenings for light are better than others , the worst nights are clear skies with no cloud cover, and the best ones are thin cloud with the moon poking out , over a period of time you can train your eyes to virtually see in the dark , now I am in the mid 70s my eyes are nowhere as good as they once were when it come to flighting duck at night, but I still get more than my fair share with the ones I can still see , as a member have already said you don't take your eyes off the duck / goose you intend to fire at and at the time of firing the gun should be in your shoulder while still watching the bird , it is then a matter of drawing the gun past the bird and pulling the trigger at more or less the same time , easier said than done if you are not use to it . I used to spend many nights walking around the marshes under the moon jumping duck out of the dykes , you always tried to walk with the moon on the other side of the dyke so they jumped into what little light there was , same again , you watch the duck while the gun is fitting in your shoulder and block the duck out while pulling the trigger , if you can see the duck as you are pulling the trigger then you are below it and you will miss it . Very rarely you will pick a night when the marshes are covered in snow with a full moon out , this is like shooting in the day light , you can even tell the duck from the drake when they jump , one of the strangest shots I once done on a similar night was a covey of English Partridges jumped up in front of me , crossed over in the snow and I knocked one out about 10 o clock at night , somewhere down the line I had most likely broken the law , but at that time of the night and no one about the chances of getting court were very unlikely to say the least Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalkedUp Posted January 23, 2022 Report Share Posted January 23, 2022 If you train yourself to operate in the dark you will quickly find that your eyes are routinely able to perceive more than the less initiated. Whether your brain uses additional information to amalgamate, or better process, what you see in limited light; or it’s a physiological improvement, I cannot say. Just take someone who is fit and well, unused to being out at night and take them for a walk in the dark. They are just not used to seeing in the dark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterHenry Posted January 24, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2022 Thanks for all the answers - the more I think about it, the more it makes sense that its just not something I'm use to. Practice makes perfect I suppose - so perhaps nightly walks without a torch from now on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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