A wise old fisherman once told me that, to a bass, all my lures looked black from underneath; especially on a sunny day. It was some of the best advice I think I ever got.
According to the photos, sun orientation plays a factor as well. If the sun is low on the horizon, it seemed to really make the silhouette of the white lure pop where as if directly above, the black lure really stood out.
When me and my cousin worm fish, I'll start with the opposite color than him. If he starts with dark, I'll use white. When one of us starts catching fish, the other will change his color. Remain in contact with your fishing buddy, yell information across the pond. Finding out what the fish want is the most important thing!
Water clarity is the principal factor when it comes to color selection. All your videos show bass in clear water which I don't have--mostly stained like tea with low visibility. Maybe I need to come fish with you for a change. As water visibility is reduced, go with solid patterns and less flash. In murkier water, go with white and (not or) chartreuse colors orange, and bright reds that will be visible to bass and draw big bites. I start in the dark of early morning fish through first light through sunrise for about another hour. I will need to change bait colors as light becomes more progressive. Black, blue, and dark purple create a strong silhouette that bass can detect more easily. These contrasting hues are particularly effective in low-visibility conditions...thanks for all you do Steve!
This year, Zoom's Red Bug color has been my secret bass slayer. Both in the Speedworm and Ultra-Vibe Speedworm (with a 1/16 oz Tungsten cone weight pinned to the head for the 2nd one)!
Another great video. When I used to scuba dive, I noticed the upward back lit contrast. I have always wondered do lure colors really matter when the bass is looking upwards. But when looking at fish sideways or downwards, you could really tell the brilliance of their markings.
Funny you showed this, for years I use a white Jig black blue trailer, my only fish last nite on Lake Stonewall in WV came on that favorite combo. Spinner bait was a no go, 3/4 Oz big white head white and silver blade and big black blue craw no skirt but usually works well
Great video Steve! Here’s my approach after 50 years of bass fishing. I can see and control white lures best against a dark background during the cast, so I start with white in shallow, target-rich areas and I stick with it if it’s catching fish. On the other hand, when I’m fishing deep enough that I can’t see a white lure, I often use darker colors because I think the fish will see no reason to refuse them when they are harder to see against the background. If this doesn’t work, I might try the opposite color choice before I leave the area.
Steve, you are very accurate in what you are saying. But something that was not mentioned is something I figured out years ago and then put 2 and 2 together. White/ very light natural colors work great in off colored water and black/ dark colors work great in clear water. Here is why.... Look at the forage/ baitfish. In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver. They camo into their surroundings and water clarity plays a huge role. Why do you think they call it black bass? Originally they were caught in crystal clear shallow water and they were almost black. So fishing lures in colors like mentioned is actually matching the hatch.
@@SteveRogersOutdoors No it's not "all excellent". When Maniac says "In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver." that's just the opposite of "excellent". "Dark water" is usually due to tatin staining and everything gets stained, including the fish. When he says, "They camo into their surroundings and water clarity plays a huge role", he's spot on, which negates the aforementioned line of reasoning that, "In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver." It can't be both ways. A bass or a snook or the baitfish at the mouth of the river will be silver due to the clearer water. The further up the river they go the darker/more stained they get, almost turning black in some cases. The golden shiner is gold due to the tannin in the water. Gold lures outperform silver when the water is tannin, and the opposite is true in clear water. Maniac needs to check his arithmetic.
I guess it all comes down to the background from the fish's point of view. Here in Europe we have a fish known as the Asp, which belongs to the family of cyprinidae (carp) but are actually predators which mostly hunt just below the surface. They are usually best caught on top water lures such as poppers and stickbaits but also shallow running cranks and spinnerbaits work great. In wide open spaces where there is little or no overhanging trees and such, black or otherwise dark lures tend to work best, also at night if the moon is out. If they are closer to the shoreline with trees casting shade on the surface of the water, brighter colors are better.
I remember using bright yellow Zoom Trick Worms wacky rigged in clear water and just cleaning up. Went through the whole package of worms in an hour. Next day fishing it didn’t work. A cold front went through during the night and turned the fish off. I learned if the fish are very aggressive give them something high contrast they can easily find.
Great video Steve, very interesting information, just trying to figure out why pictures at 1:43 the sky in the black lure is sharp, but sky in the white picture is not, but very muted like the lure?
The camera angle makes a difference. I try to keep it the same, but between it moving and the clouds changing, sometimes the background shows up a little differently.
I need to do some more fishing with blue. I used to a lot years ago and then I kind of forgot about it. Thank you for bringing it up! Have a wonderful day Shannon and a great weekend.
I’ve been fishing my favorite lake for 50 years now. It’s my favorite because I’ve caught more 5 pound bass out of that lake than all the other lakes I’ve fished combined. When I first started fishing that lake 50 years ago, if you caught five bass, one of them would weigh 5 pounds. It didn’t matter much which lure you used as long as it was black and white. It’s still true today that if you catch five bass, one will weigh 5 pounds. Over the decades I’ve started using white more often than not and still catching 5 pounders. Black and white still works good too.
Folks can reference one of your past videos showing what bass see vs what we see. Makes some of the color choices interesting. Have been a fan of dark on top lures forever, accentuates the "flash". Looking forward to the Hannon's lures video. I have an old VHS he put out way back when. Just full of gold nuggets. A big fan of his concept of minimizing negative cues. Enjoy your channel sir. All the best.
Hey Steve, another great video. I believe i still have some of the late Doug Hannons original(?) snake head baits there the head was actually a separate piece of painted foam.
For years now I try to throw natural colors, matching the bait fish in the lakes I fish. I’ve gotten away from all the “odd colors” and I’ve caught a lot more fish for doing so.
I am really excited to put together the video I am working on with his lures. I am such a huge fan of his work I thought it would be a nice tribute. Only problem is, I need to be careful - I only have a limited number of them.
Salt Strong has a soft plastic color called Slam Shady that's a white with some subtle sparkles and it's made to show up in the most light and water conditions. Their 2.0 paddletail has caught a crazy number of species in fresh and saltwater, from ditches to offshore and everywhere in between. They have other profiles in that color and Z Man makes some stuff for saltwater in that color. In my experience it works. I use white Gulp swimming mullet and shrimp and jerk shad quite a bit too and it's rare that white doesn't get bit if fish are feeding. Chartreuse is another color that works for me in the saltwater in clear or dirty water. The Salt Strong UA-cam channel has some good videos about colors, and about scents. It really doesn't matter that they're mostly saltwater guys, fish are fish. I don't think bass vision is very different from flounder or redfish vision.
Can you do a top water video on how bass reacts to frogs or poppers? Also color is quite interesting as well as ive always wondered if they can see perch colors.
Would be very interesting to explore what the bass can really hear, what they really can’t and explore what has high frequency sound and what has low frequency sound!
I have been doing the same thing this year: looking for lures that have higher contrast. There are so many crazy and specific color pattern in lures but we don't really se and "counter-countershading" and I wish there were some to try. Dark on the belly and white on the top would be great versatility.
That is a really great idea to get that contrast like you said. Will have to try and do some experimenting with that. I have really been happy with the results of focusing more on contrast this year.
So we should try a shad senko that's black on top whit on bottom but rig it upside down. That way it's reverse counter shaded and sticks out because it's black down when it's high in the water. Then white up when it's below the fish.
As to whether high contrast is good. I lean toward loving it when searching. But sometimes when targeting, I go the other direction deliberately. Sometimes I think the less they can see something something = no negative visual cues. Poking short, heavy weighted, wacky rigged green pumpkin senkos into thick weeds after a missed white Fluke or Zero hit gives them a second shot at motion moving the greenery without seeing much. I even have some of the old Baby Zara Spook lures in see through clear that I will use as follow-up to missed hits on buzzbaits and prop baits. Those fish can be really wary . There's a time for everything for sure... Anyways, Perfect timing for this Steve. I am almost ready to stop buying chartreuse and most other colors for my soft plastics. Based on your prior vids of how bass see I have been thinking to maybe just go black and white, plus keep a Spike-it pen set and lighten the tackle box a ton.
Thanks Steve for another great video to digest! I’m 69 and have been bass fishing all my life, lots of ponds but I have always had a boat to for lake fishing but certainly no pro. I have had better luck with white spinner baits, buzz baits in shallower clear water than black, however, it seems that most all my fish I catch in deeper water are on darker baits, not necessarily black but dark worms and crawfish. In stained water I’m not sure what a dark purple worm or watermelon green really looks like, but I catch many more bass on darker baits in deeper or stained water. I rarely fish white baits on the bottom other than a jig with a white grub which has worked in some case but usually darker baits for me.
I changed the way I picked lures at night because my brother was upgrading our sack every evening tournament we finished. He was throwing bright white and I was throwing black and red or blue mostly. I was hammering them early and accounting for most of our weight but he was catching them later.
I just had an idea for a future video. Lead vs tungsten. Does tungsten *REALLY* transmit more feeling when it ticks over rocks and wood and stuff? I'm thinking specifically about bullet weights for Texas rigs.
On Winni in New Hampshire a Smoke Grub with Gold Fleck or aCrawdad colored Tube will get you fish - Or get out off of Rattlesnake Island or the other two smaller islands up near Merideth Cove and throw a Chartreuse Spinner - 3/4 head for Smallies-
here in Northern Sweden we traditionally use black for when trout hunt from below bait fush schools, it is almost magical, they can rise from 5+m deep like a misile (you can see bottlm well below 10m as water is extremely clear so we can easily follow them take the bait btw, forget us moving much in the boat like I have seen in bass videos, you wave your hand too much or turn head too fast and no fish for 50m radius The trulu OLD way sportfishimg up here was long handline with a soot black spoon or wobbler towed 50-60m behind a rowboat slowly going past fishing spot, as line likely was 15-20kg (34-45lbs) waxed linnen it rarely allowed the thing below 2m deep due to drag.
Manns Jelly worm in Purple was a killer at one time- I Wonder if some small bait shop out there still has a ton of them hanging around?- Question- How do tell if a fish is going to bury down to the bottom or come up and throw his- her head? - If a fish is digging I keep my pole high- but it decides to shoot to the top I Find myself not reacting fast enough to drop my pole to water level before it breaks water and shakes its head- spitting the hook out - Closer to shore maybe in 6 feet it seems they dive closer to the shore and down towards cover- In open water they either dig or shoot up to the top - I've lost some good fish in tournaments by not reacting quickly enough-
That is an excellent question. The best way that I can describe what I look/feel for is as soon as the pressure of the fish pulling decreases, I immediately reel that extra slack in and keep the rod tip down towards the water. Another trick that has helped me is to keep the rod more horizontal towards the side and maintain side pressure. I gives me a little more time to react since the rod tip is already closer to the water. I hope that makes sense.
Just a thought as I have always had tremendous success with black. Maybe the less “clear” profile of black is better since the bass reacts and doesn’t get the clearest view which may be obviously not live prey?
Good video as usual Steve! Think that visibility is important but many times less is best. I tie flies and make my own lures so I full control over color and size. I get to do a lot of testing. I have seen (with a variety of species) that noticeably different baits will catch fish, but the fish will quickly associate the loud or stand-out bait with trouble and learn to reject it... a t-bone steak in a Macdonald's burger will get grabbed quick but will be rejected even faster if the steak turns out to be rubber. Fool me once! Fish aren't smart but they learn quick to survive. Reaction bites and curiosity bites do work... sometimes... for a while, but IMHO, natural and subtle works all the time. Predators (bass) have no trouble finding and catching naturally camouflaged (counter shaded) prey. They would starve if they couldn't. Think that many lures spook more fish than they attract. Just saying that I've seen smaller, more subtle flies/lures work well on pressured fish. I've caught big bass while throwing 1 inch long mini crankbaits for crappie while typical lures were ignored. I always take a couple of casts with minis before leaving an area, and it often pays off with an additional bass or two. Cheers!
Watched a guy at Morain Hills State Park McHenry Illinois bury his 10lbs scale 3 times in row on Berkley Power Slugo, man I ran out and got some. Caught my PB 7.5lb bass. Later broken in Az but oh the menories.
Good stuff as always bro, but here's a question... maybe more of a challenge. Can you get footage of white vs black lures at night? Full moon vs new moon? I'm sure that would be difficult if not impossible, but it would be greatly appreciated!
Black works for contrast as well as to mimic leeches and eels... White tends to match countershading/flashing of natural bait fish. I would say black up north and white down south. Although I think color isn't always the thing to get bit. More Action and Secondary action for bites.
I remember the first time I fished a lake in upper MN that had just huge leeches swimming all over it. You could watch them. Creeped me out but the fish sure loved them.
We just have to remember that while we are just now starting have a better idea what the fish are actually seeing that it doesn’t change what actually works. Certain colors work better in certain conditions and that hasn’t really changed. I throw certain colors in clear water not because they see it better or don’t see it better. I simply throw it because through experimentation I’ve learned the fish prefer it and that should be the most important premise for color selection rather than what we think something looks like.
In general... BLACK for clear water WHITE for stained or murky water. Now, where does pink, pumpkin, chartreuse or bubble gum fit in? All these colors are very good also
Those are all great colors. I like those higher contrast ones when fishing the mid to lower parts of the water column. But of course, the next time out the bass could quickly tell me I'm doing something wrong and have to adjust. Lol. I have bought a lot more pink lures this year. Thanks for watching!
The reason this might not be true is most bait fish and snakes and frogs have white bellies. So when fish look up the white color matches their food better.
I was surprised you didn’t touch on how bass see colors and contrast much differently than we do. So even though black and white are technically not colors, do they see black and white just like we do?
I’ve got a video that dives deeper into this. ua-cam.com/video/m-AH3-8Warg/v-deo.htmlsi=c_0k4QDJgTKX3xBw This video focuses mainly on the different color cone configuration bass have. Thank you for watching!
Does anyone else have success with white lures with black backs? Theres just something about having 2 colors contrast each other that the fish over here love. Any thoughts on why?
I'm wondering how moot of a topic this is since Bass don't see or hear like us humans. I've been partial to black, white, red, with the "odd/non natural" color like chartreuse/hot pink.
Every one of your videos makes me evaluate what I am doing. I'm older and old school, so I remember Doug's baits and tapes. Where did you find the Snakebaits???
I found some on Ebay and this kit I bought actually had 18 of them in there in six different colors. I may have to try and boil some though to revive them - a few are pretty messed up I'm sure from sitting around forever.
Go one step better with black, use "flat" black. It doesnt give off a shine. A shine, or reflection is always silver and disrupts that contrast. All of ny spooks have bellys that are painted flat black.
For me everyday is different...could be the same lake I was crushing them on a swimbait 3 days earlier then all they'll hit is a Mr twister on a jighead .....& frogs, they love it but It varies...one day I'll barely twitch it & get em then next time they don't want that, I gotta burn it & they slam it. I know nothing about fish. They're unpredictable & seem to even be moody. ( note* I'm fishing WAY OVERPRESSURED lake) like 20-50 kayak fisherman daily on about 1mile lake.
I’ve been fishing my favorite lake for 50 years now. It’s my favorite because I’ve caught more 5 pound bass out of that lake than all the other lakes I’ve fished combined. When I first started fishing that lake 50 years ago, if you caught five bass, one of them would weigh 5 pounds. It didn’t matter much which lure you used as long as it was black and white. It’s still true today that if you catch five bass, one will weigh 5 pounds. Over the decades I’ve started using white more often than not and still catching 5 pounders. Black and white still works good too.
That is awesome to have such a fun home lake. Mine here has gone through a major decline unfortunately. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us!
Hello Everyone! Have a blessed day!
STILL the most underrated bass fishing UA-cam channel.
A wise old fisherman once told me that, to a bass, all my lures looked black from underneath; especially on a sunny day. It was some of the best advice I think I ever got.
It makes color choice easier! Lol.
Low brow, my man, you two should just finally do a joint video together.
I enjoy low bro I think he's really good. But you got to admit Steve is the best thing that's ever happened to UA-cam
According to the photos, sun orientation plays a factor as well. If the sun is low on the horizon, it seemed to really make the silhouette of the white lure pop where as if directly above, the black lure really stood out.
When me and my cousin worm fish, I'll start with the opposite color than him. If he starts with dark, I'll use white. When one of us starts catching fish, the other will change his color. Remain in contact with your fishing buddy, yell information across the pond. Finding out what the fish want is the most important thing!
That is so much fun when fishing with someone. Makes the whole figuring them out more enjoyable.
Water clarity is the principal factor when it comes to color selection. All your videos show bass in clear water which I don't have--mostly stained like tea with low visibility. Maybe I need to come fish with you for a change. As water visibility is reduced, go with solid patterns and less flash. In murkier water, go with white and (not or) chartreuse colors orange, and bright reds that will be visible to bass and draw big bites. I start in the dark of early morning fish through first light through sunrise for about another hour. I will need to change bait colors as light becomes more progressive. Black, blue, and dark purple create a strong silhouette that bass can detect more easily. These contrasting hues are particularly effective in low-visibility conditions...thanks for all you do Steve!
Thanks! This is all great stuff.
This year, Zoom's Red Bug color has been my secret bass slayer. Both in the Speedworm and Ultra-Vibe Speedworm (with a 1/16 oz Tungsten cone weight pinned to the head for the 2nd one)!
High contrast over color. Got it. Another good one. Thanks Steve
Another great video. When I used to scuba dive, I noticed the upward back lit contrast. I have always wondered do lure colors really matter when the bass is looking upwards. But when looking at fish sideways or downwards, you could really tell the brilliance of their markings.
Another excellent video, Steve!
Funny you showed this, for years I use a white Jig black blue trailer, my only fish last nite on Lake Stonewall in WV came on that favorite combo. Spinner bait was a no go, 3/4 Oz big white head white and silver blade and big black blue craw no skirt but usually works well
Steve, love your channel! I love your positive mindset. I think this makes perfect sense. I appreciate the insight and will put this to good use.
Awesome! Thank you!
Great video Steve! Here’s my approach after 50 years of bass fishing. I can see and control white lures best against a dark background during the cast, so I start with white in shallow, target-rich areas and I stick with it if it’s catching fish. On the other hand, when I’m fishing deep enough that I can’t see a white lure, I often use darker colors because I think the fish will see no reason to refuse them when they are harder to see against the background. If this doesn’t work, I might try the opposite color choice before I leave the area.
Stunning! Makes complete sense, Steve.
Thank you! And thanks for watching.
Excellent. Thank you. Great explanation and demonstration of theory without absolutes. Love your approach.
Thanks!
Steve, you are very accurate in what you are saying. But something that was not mentioned is something I figured out years ago and then put 2 and 2 together.
White/ very light natural colors work great in off colored water and black/ dark colors work great in clear water. Here is why....
Look at the forage/ baitfish. In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver. They camo into their surroundings and water clarity plays a huge role.
Why do you think they call it black bass? Originally they were caught in crystal clear shallow water and they were almost black.
So fishing lures in colors like mentioned is actually matching the hatch.
This is all excellent. Thank you for sharing it with all of us.
@@SteveRogersOutdoors No it's not "all excellent". When Maniac says "In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver." that's just the opposite of "excellent".
"Dark water" is usually due to tatin staining and everything gets stained, including the fish. When he says, "They camo into their surroundings and water clarity plays a huge role", he's spot on, which negates the aforementioned line of reasoning that, "In super clear water fish become extremely dark colored and in dirty water they become super light/ silver." It can't be both ways.
A bass or a snook or the baitfish at the mouth of the river will be silver due to the clearer water. The further up the river they go the darker/more stained they get, almost turning black in some cases. The golden shiner is gold due to the tannin in the water. Gold lures outperform silver when the water is tannin, and the opposite is true in clear water. Maniac needs to check his arithmetic.
I think as summer progresses the fish have seen most things and this "reverse" thinking on color gives them something new... great video steve ..
Thank you! Hope you are getting lots of time on the water.
I guess it all comes down to the background from the fish's point of view. Here in Europe we have a fish known as the Asp, which belongs to the family of cyprinidae (carp) but are actually predators which mostly hunt just below the surface. They are usually best caught on top water lures such as poppers and stickbaits but also shallow running cranks and spinnerbaits work great. In wide open spaces where there is little or no overhanging trees and such, black or otherwise dark lures tend to work best, also at night if the moon is out. If they are closer to the shoreline with trees casting shade on the surface of the water, brighter colors are better.
I remember using bright yellow Zoom Trick Worms wacky rigged in clear water and just cleaning up. Went through the whole package of worms in an hour. Next day fishing it didn’t work. A cold front went through during the night and turned the fish off. I learned if the fish are very aggressive give them something high contrast they can easily find.
That is an excellent point! Thank you.
I had tied on a white spook for Saturdays tournament but I’m going to switch it out to black to test .
Good luck!
Great video Steve, very interesting information, just trying to figure out why pictures at 1:43 the sky in the black lure is sharp, but sky in the white picture is not, but very muted like the lure?
The camera angle makes a difference. I try to keep it the same, but between it moving and the clouds changing, sometimes the background shows up a little differently.
Great to see ya, Steve. I use blue or darker green pumpkin. Great video, Steve. Have a great day and be safe
I need to do some more fishing with blue. I used to a lot years ago and then I kind of forgot about it. Thank you for bringing it up! Have a wonderful day Shannon and a great weekend.
Great video, very informative! I like studies like this and it was very well presented. I quickly hit subscribe.
Awesome, thank you!
@@SteveRogersOutdoors your welcome, plz check out what we are doing for fishing 😀
Great info as always Steve!
Glad you liked it!
I remember my uncle using a black tiny torpedo for bass he caught many fish. You’re right on Steve.
That is a great little lure!
Love the footage! I thought this was the case, but now I know for a fact.
Thanks Steve..caught my P.B. several years ago on a Shade color Sluggo
That is awesome! Congrats!
I’ve been fishing my favorite lake for 50 years now. It’s my favorite because I’ve caught more 5 pound bass out of that lake than all the other lakes I’ve fished combined.
When I first started fishing that lake 50 years ago, if you caught five bass, one of them would weigh 5 pounds.
It didn’t matter much which lure you used as long as it was black and white.
It’s still true today that if you catch five bass, one will weigh 5 pounds. Over the decades I’ve started using white more often than not and still catching 5 pounders. Black and white still works good too.
Folks can reference one of your past videos showing what bass see vs what we see. Makes some of the color choices interesting. Have been a fan of dark on top lures forever, accentuates the "flash". Looking forward to the Hannon's lures video. I have an old VHS he put out way back when. Just full of gold nuggets. A big fan of his concept of minimizing negative cues. Enjoy your channel sir. All the best.
Thanks! I really love Doug’s stuff as well. The bass fishing world lost him too early.
Hey Steve, another great video. I believe i still have some of the late Doug Hannons original(?) snake head baits there the head was actually a separate piece of painted foam.
Oh wow! That would be interesting to see in action.
Hmmm 🤔 very interesting.
Thank you for great information I was wondering how black at the bottom of the water was going to show up better but I am new at bass fishing
Thanks for watching and welcome to the sport!
Nice work!!
Thanks!
Great Video Steve! Good info for sure!
Thanks! Hope you are getting lots of time on the water down there. Summer is flying by.
@@SteveRogersOutdoors I am some, its been too hot.
For years now I try to throw natural colors, matching the bait fish in the lakes I fish. I’ve gotten away from all the “odd colors” and I’ve caught a lot more fish for doing so.
Really awesome to see the Doug Hannon snake I have caught monsters on it !
I am really excited to put together the video I am working on with his lures. I am such a huge fan of his work I thought it would be a nice tribute. Only problem is, I need to be careful - I only have a limited number of them.
Good ol' Black Sluggo...staple in my tackle box. 😊
It’s a good one!
Salt Strong has a soft plastic color called Slam Shady that's a white with some subtle sparkles and it's made to show up in the most light and water conditions. Their 2.0 paddletail has caught a crazy number of species in fresh and saltwater, from ditches to offshore and everywhere in between. They have other profiles in that color and Z Man makes some stuff for saltwater in that color. In my experience it works. I use white Gulp swimming mullet and shrimp and jerk shad quite a bit too and it's rare that white doesn't get bit if fish are feeding. Chartreuse is another color that works for me in the saltwater in clear or dirty water.
The Salt Strong UA-cam channel has some good videos about colors, and about scents. It really doesn't matter that they're mostly saltwater guys, fish are fish. I don't think bass vision is very different from flounder or redfish vision.
Thanks for sharing this! They do have a great channel!
Can you do a top water video on how bass reacts to frogs or poppers? Also color is quite interesting as well as ive always wondered if they can see perch colors.
I will definitely try to do that. Thank you!
I wonder if a lure that's countershaded black on the bottom and white on top would make for a good all-weather color scheme
I really think that would be a great one to investigate.
The Crankbait Corporation lure company did this in the 1980"s.
In clear water junebug, pink and chartreuse are such a good colors, especially in deep water and cloudy days.
Junebug is so good. I really started using it more again this year and very pleased I did. Thank your for sharing your experiences!
I love JB, and I just touch the tail of green pumpkin in chartruse, just like the tail of my forage fish ... Works well here.
But why ? Junebug is basically purple
Would be very interesting to explore what the bass can really hear, what they really can’t and explore what has high frequency sound and what has low frequency sound!
I believe sonar pings do effect bass .... I think Steve here did a vid on sonar sounds .....
I have been doing the same thing this year: looking for lures that have higher contrast. There are so many crazy and specific color pattern in lures but we don't really se and "counter-countershading" and I wish there were some to try. Dark on the belly and white on the top would be great versatility.
That is a really great idea to get that contrast like you said. Will have to try and do some experimenting with that. I have really been happy with the results of focusing more on contrast this year.
I support your view dark on belly white on top is versatile. In my territory, the mixed soft worm half dark and half white is my go-to lure.
In the US we say bright day bright bait, dark day dark bait. I believe in Japan they do the reverse. Personally, I lean towards the Japanese approach.
That is so interesting. I hadn’t heard that from over there. Thanks!
I thought it's common sense because I do that as well. I use dark bait on bright day and bright bait on dark day.
So we should try a shad senko that's black on top whit on bottom but rig it upside down. That way it's reverse counter shaded and sticks out because it's black down when it's high in the water. Then white up when it's below the fish.
I think that would be really interesting to try.
As to whether high contrast is good. I lean toward loving it when searching. But sometimes when targeting, I go the other direction deliberately. Sometimes I think the less they can see something something = no negative visual cues. Poking short, heavy weighted, wacky rigged green pumpkin senkos into thick weeds after a missed white Fluke or Zero hit gives them a second shot at motion moving the greenery without seeing much. I even have some of the old Baby Zara Spook lures in see through clear that I will use as follow-up to missed hits on buzzbaits and prop baits. Those fish can be really wary . There's a time for everything for sure... Anyways, Perfect timing for this Steve. I am almost ready to stop buying chartreuse and most other colors for my soft plastics. Based on your prior vids of how bass see I have been thinking to maybe just go black and white, plus keep a Spike-it pen set and lighten the tackle box a ton.
Excellent approach - I really like how you break that down. Thank you for adding it.
Thanks Steve for another great video to digest! I’m 69 and have been bass fishing all my life, lots of ponds but I have always had a boat to for lake fishing but certainly no pro. I have had better luck with white spinner baits, buzz baits in shallower clear water than black, however, it seems that most all my fish I catch in deeper water are on darker baits, not necessarily black but dark worms and crawfish. In stained water I’m not sure what a dark purple worm or watermelon green really looks like, but I catch many more bass on darker baits in deeper or stained water. I rarely fish white baits on the bottom other than a jig with a white grub which has worked in some case but usually darker baits for me.
Thank you for sharing your experiences with everyone! I appreciate it.
Great video… slugo’s… man when i just got into fishing when i was 12-13 i would throw a 3” on a unweighted hook . Got my first 5lber on them
The tackle stores sure used to be full of those lures. They were everywhere.
I changed the way I picked lures at night because my brother was upgrading our sack every evening tournament we finished. He was throwing bright white and I was throwing black and red or blue mostly. I was hammering them early and accounting for most of our weight but he was catching them later.
That is super interesting! Thank you for sharing this.
I just had an idea for a future video. Lead vs tungsten. Does tungsten *REALLY* transmit more feeling when it ticks over rocks and wood and stuff? I'm thinking specifically about bullet weights for Texas rigs.
I’m actually working on that basic topic right now. Hope to have it out soon. Thank you!
On Winni in New Hampshire a Smoke Grub with Gold Fleck or aCrawdad colored Tube will get you fish - Or get out off of Rattlesnake Island or the other two smaller islands up near Merideth Cove and throw a Chartreuse Spinner - 3/4 head for Smallies-
White was the only color the bass at my lake wanted during pre-spawn. 4" and 5" white Yum Dingers were the VIPs.
Thank you for sharing this!
here in Northern Sweden we traditionally use black for when trout hunt from below bait fush schools, it is almost magical, they can rise from 5+m deep like a misile (you can see bottlm well below 10m as water is extremely clear so we can easily follow them take the bait
btw, forget us moving much in the boat like I have seen in bass videos, you wave your hand too much or turn head too fast and no fish for 50m radius The trulu OLD way sportfishimg up here was long handline with a soot black spoon or wobbler towed 50-60m behind a rowboat slowly going past fishing spot, as line likely was 15-20kg (34-45lbs) waxed linnen it rarely allowed the thing below 2m deep due to drag.
That is incredible! Thank you for sharing this. I would love to experience fishing in Sweden.
Manns Jelly worm in Purple was a killer at one time- I Wonder if some small bait shop out there still has a ton of them hanging around?- Question- How do tell if a fish is going to bury down to the bottom or come up and throw his- her head? - If a fish is digging I keep my pole high- but it decides to shoot to the top I Find myself not reacting fast enough to drop my pole to water level before it breaks water and shakes its head- spitting the hook out - Closer to shore maybe in 6 feet it seems they dive closer to the shore and down towards cover- In open water they either dig or shoot up to the top - I've lost some good fish in tournaments by not reacting quickly enough-
That is an excellent question. The best way that I can describe what I look/feel for is as soon as the pressure of the fish pulling decreases, I immediately reel that extra slack in and keep the rod tip down towards the water. Another trick that has helped me is to keep the rod more horizontal towards the side and maintain side pressure. I gives me a little more time to react since the rod tip is already closer to the water. I hope that makes sense.
Just caught my PB smally on a 1/4 oz chatterbait with junebug colors. Dirty water, overcast, and nearly dusk.
Congratulations!
Just a thought as I have always had tremendous success with black. Maybe the less “clear” profile of black is better since the bass reacts and doesn’t get the clearest view which may be obviously not live prey?
Good video as usual Steve!
Think that visibility is important but many times less is best. I tie flies and make my own lures so I full control over color and size. I get to do a lot of testing.
I have seen (with a variety of species) that noticeably different baits will catch fish, but the fish will quickly associate the loud or stand-out bait with trouble and learn to reject it... a t-bone steak in a Macdonald's burger will get grabbed quick but will be rejected even faster if the steak turns out to be rubber. Fool me once! Fish aren't smart but they learn quick to survive.
Reaction bites and curiosity bites do work... sometimes... for a while, but IMHO, natural and subtle works all the time.
Predators (bass) have no trouble finding and catching naturally camouflaged (counter shaded) prey. They would starve if they couldn't.
Think that many lures spook more fish than they attract.
Just saying that I've seen smaller, more subtle flies/lures work well on pressured fish. I've caught big bass while throwing 1 inch long mini crankbaits for crappie while typical lures were ignored. I always take a couple of casts with minis before leaving an area, and it often pays off with an additional bass or two.
Cheers!
This is all great stuff! Thank you for taking the time to share it with everyone.
Watched a guy at Morain Hills State Park McHenry Illinois bury his 10lbs scale 3 times in row on Berkley Power Slugo, man I ran out and got some. Caught my PB 7.5lb bass. Later broken in Az but oh the menories.
That is a great bass!
Good stuff as always bro, but here's a question... maybe more of a challenge. Can you get footage of white vs black lures at night? Full moon vs new moon?
I'm sure that would be difficult if not impossible, but it would be greatly appreciated!
I definitely need to do that I haven’t done any night fishing videos and need to. Thank you for the idea!
Black works for contrast as well as to mimic leeches and eels...
White tends to match countershading/flashing of natural bait fish. I would say black up north and white down south. Although I think color isn't always the thing to get bit. More Action and Secondary action for bites.
I remember the first time I fished a lake in upper MN that had just huge leeches swimming all over it. You could watch them. Creeped me out but the fish sure loved them.
We just have to remember that while we are just now starting have a better idea what the fish are actually seeing that it doesn’t change what actually works. Certain colors work better in certain conditions and that hasn’t really changed. I throw certain colors in clear water not because they see it better or don’t see it better. I simply throw it because through experimentation I’ve learned the fish prefer it and that should be the most important premise for color selection rather than what we think something looks like.
Thank you for adding this! I appreciate it.
Now you want to make me go look for my old Sluggos.
Lol. Me too! Used to have a bunch of them.
In general...
BLACK for clear water
WHITE for stained or murky water.
Now, where does pink, pumpkin, chartreuse or bubble gum fit in? All these colors are very good also
Those are all great colors. I like those higher contrast ones when fishing the mid to lower parts of the water column. But of course, the next time out the bass could quickly tell me I'm doing something wrong and have to adjust. Lol. I have bought a lot more pink lures this year. Thanks for watching!
@@SteveRogersOutdoors Yeah ... What is the deal with pink baits? I cannot argue the fact that the fish love this color.
The reason this might not be true is most bait fish and snakes and frogs have white bellies. So when fish look up the white color matches their food better.
I was surprised you didn’t touch on how bass see colors and contrast much differently than we do. So even though black and white are technically not colors, do they see black and white just like we do?
I’ve got a video that dives deeper into this. ua-cam.com/video/m-AH3-8Warg/v-deo.htmlsi=c_0k4QDJgTKX3xBw This video focuses mainly on the different color cone configuration bass have. Thank you for watching!
Does anyone make a snake similar to the one like Doug Hanson?
In my home lake black seems to do way better than white ..... I think because my water is shad free ?
That is an excellent question. Thank you for sharing your experience with this. I appreciate it!
Does anyone else have success with white lures with black backs? Theres just something about having 2 colors contrast each other that the fish over here love. Any thoughts on why?
I'm wondering how moot of a topic this is since Bass don't see or hear like us humans. I've been partial to black, white, red, with the "odd/non natural" color like chartreuse/hot pink.
Every one of your videos makes me evaluate what I am doing. I'm older and old school, so I remember Doug's baits and tapes. Where did you find the Snakebaits???
I found some on Ebay and this kit I bought actually had 18 of them in there in six different colors. I may have to try and boil some though to revive them - a few are pretty messed up I'm sure from sitting around forever.
@@SteveRogersOutdoors Thank you, I will check.
Go one step better with black, use "flat" black. It doesnt give off a shine. A shine, or reflection is always silver and disrupts that contrast. All of ny spooks have bellys that are painted flat black.
Love that! Thank you!
For me everyday is different...could be the same lake I was crushing them on a swimbait 3 days earlier then all they'll hit is a Mr twister on a jighead .....& frogs, they love it but It varies...one day I'll barely twitch it & get em then next time they don't want that, I gotta burn it & they slam it. I know nothing about fish. They're unpredictable & seem to even be moody. ( note* I'm fishing WAY OVERPRESSURED lake) like 20-50 kayak fisherman daily on about 1mile lake.
Wow! That is a lot of pressure. Bass definitely are moody. Like you said, once I think I get something figured out it changes.
this makes sense if ypou're fiching for something that has human eyes.
None of the known fish see in the same spectrum as humans.
no 2 bodies of water are the same
..bass are fresh water sharks.. when hungry.. they eat..
Steve, I just want to commend you on being able to narrate this video without making it a racial issue 😂!
I’ve been fishing my favorite lake for 50 years now. It’s my favorite because I’ve caught more 5 pound bass out of that lake than all the other lakes I’ve fished combined.
When I first started fishing that lake 50 years ago, if you caught five bass, one of them would weigh 5 pounds.
It didn’t matter much which lure you used as long as it was black and white.
It’s still true today that if you catch five bass, one will weigh 5 pounds. Over the decades I’ve started using white more often than not and still catching 5 pounders. Black and white still works good too.
That is awesome to have such a fun home lake. Mine here has gone through a major decline unfortunately. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us!
You are most welcome. Thanks for the reply.