Shooting footwork

As in so many physical activities, it all begins with footwork:

There are many benefits to adopting a proper shooting stance. Understand that your stance does have an effect on how you mount the gun, so in turn, your stance does affect the fit of your gun. The correct stance sets up the body to correctly receive the gun stock for a proper mount. This will help reduce the effects of recoil. Most importantly, a correct stance will allow the body to swing freely, while minimizing the amount of head movement. An incorrect stance makes it difficult to swing the gun without dipping the shoulders and dropping the head. Head movement is a leading cause of missed shots. In the fields birds can flush or fly in any direction. The correct stance will allow you to swing the gun in harmony with the body, letting you move with the bird while minimizing head movement. So no matter which direction the bird flushes you can swing the gun smoothly on target. Remember that your stance is the foundation of your footwork, ready position, swing, and gun mount.

Tom Deck, The Orvis Guide to Gunfitting