The best answer is to always move when presenting your handgun. To me, it doesn't matter in what direction, but just about everyone will react by moving rearward to get away from a threat. Most trainers stress stepping to the right or left, getting off the line of attack.

Most folks will not do so, however, based on the simple reaction of most everyone who has a gun pointed at them by "accident," as might happen at a range. The "muzzlees" almost always back up quickly (and put their hands up, too), despite knowing a bullet arrives much faster than they can back up.

On this point, I happened to catch part of a film clip for a police reality TV show in which an officer--his arms extended and gun in a two-hand hold--has two offenders held at gunpoint next to their truck. One offender draws and fires a handgun he has concealed beneath his sweatshirt. He starts firing as the gun comes level and continues to do so as he brings the gun to arm's length, one-handed.

The officer's reaction to being repeatedly shot in his chest is to back up (and he does not fire). The two are never more than two arms' lengths apart. Both move out of view of the in-car dash camera while this occurs. The scene, illuminated by the officer's car lights, is in darkness and takes just a few seconds.

There's no one good answer to this problem, other than, as stated above, to move and do so as part of your reaction to the threat. If you need to hold a threat at gunpoint, do so with the gun held so that you can see the threat's hands. Pull the gun back in toward your chest or lower it only enough to accomplish this. Getting the gun back on him takes time--time you will not have. And keep moving.