Understanding Optics by Sarah Stallone

Optics for hunting are best when optimized. Sarah Stallone is the owner of Accurate Advantage, Leupold Optics representative, and is the Trip Tips columnist for Hunt Alaska magazine. In this seminar she talks about how rifle scopes work, optimizing optics for hunting, and dispelling myths about optics for hunting.

In most optics for hunting the parts of the rifle scope are more or less the same. Sarah shows you what those parts are so you have a better understanding of how the different parts of the scope work together.

Then she explains the concept of “optical zero.” Essentially, this means your reticles are centered within the tube of the scope, allowing for the most adjustment of both windage and elevation. Optics generally come from the factory optically zeroed. You want your scope optically zeroed before sighting it in.

Focus adjustment and parallax adjustment are the next concepts discussed. Focus adjustment helps you personalize the reticle focus for your eyes. Parallax adjustment focuses the reticle to your target. Not all scopes have parallax adjustment but those that do allow for the clearest look through your scope. Both focus and parallax adjustment allow you to personalize the overall focus of your scope.

Eye relief is that distance between your eye and the scope that allows a full picture through the scope, with no black around the edges. Obviously, for heavy calibers more eye relief is helpful as it helps keep you from getting “scoped” due to recoil.

Next, she answers numerous questions and dispels myths regarding optics for hunting on topics such as light transmission, tube diameter, objective diameter, parallax adjustment, and glass quality based on country of origin.

If you’re like many hunters, you have a very limited understanding of how optics for hunting really work, the internal construction, and how to optimize and take advantage of the features of your rifle scope. If you fall into this category, and many of us do, you will definitely learn something by watching this video.