The best, most accurate shots are felt, not seen. Although it may be tough for a new gun owner to wrap their mind around, the truth is that if your shooting fundamentals are solid, you'll know when your shot struck home without having to see the bullet hole.
There are a number of shooting fundamentals, from breath control, to balance, to sight picture and more. Those fundamentals are all fairly easy to describe verbally, but when it comes to where the rubber meets the road—where your finger touches the trigger—reading a description just isn't enough. This video from Smith & Wesson's GUNSMARTS series, starring instructor Ken Scott, gives you a much better picture of what a good trigger squeeze should feel like, and what it's like to feel the shot break.
Dry-fire practice is a terrific way to work on your fundamentals. That said, as Scott demonstrates, live-fire practice is essential to understanding how your body and brain coordinate with the controlled explosion happening inside the gun. It's only at that moment that you can truly appreciate the way in which all of those fundamentals come together when your finger is on the trigger and the range is hot.
