I agree 100%. That�s not enough fish for me to stop and throw at.

You guys are inspiring me to look alot more than stopping on the first concentration of fish on my finder.

I may go tomorrow if the wind isn't to bad.

White/chartreuse bucktail jig, 1/2 ounce up to one ounce. Tip with twister either dipped in Dip It , or lemon lime from Striper Sniper. Shallow fishing can boat spook the fish real easy, therefore, via si locate and fish from a castable distance. This time of year the fish are normally pushing shad to a shallow sand bar ,helping bottom cast and retrieve simple.
The images in question are catfish.

I'm not convinced they are not catfish. Does everybody else think they are whites/hybrids?

Just a guess here probably so, sure not what I look for.

I appreciate all the input. Next time I go out I'll be looking for a much bigger concentration of fish. I have a few ideas from my fishing tutor that I'll have to try out.

I'll post a pic if I have any success

I made a short video of several screenshots I took lately at Fort Phantom Hill showing smaller catfish vs white bass which seem to be in similiar areas this time of year. I have had several bad trips for both species until I learned what smaller catfish or catfish in general look like compared to white bass. They seem to hang out in similiar areas in Fall time so understanding what you are seeing on sonar is critical to have successful trips for either species you are targeting. I hope the video is helpful!

Excellent video...

I think I am getting the difference. The video is a great resource..

Good info. Thanks

Went out today and found these. I think I'm seeing clouds of threadfins on top. Maybe gizzard shad thick on the bottom. Possible catfish floating kind of between the groups?

Any opinions would be appreciated. Maybe I need to turn down my sensitivity. I have a Lowrance HDS 10 and it's set at -4 and 74% color line and palette 13.

You definitely found the bait didn't you! Very hard to tell what game fish are mixed in when there is that much bait. A lot of times I utilize DI split screen with 2D to try and figure out what I'm seeing. I also experiment with turning sensitivity way way down and eliminate most of the returns and bait and see where the game fish are. I wonder if you drive around more if the game fish may be on the outskirts of the huge bait cloud herding the bait. I am wondering too when the bait is that thick how well your slab or cut bait (if catfishing) would compete. I'm curious what somebody with more experience than myself would suggest when bait is that thick and how to approach it.

There are predatory fish in screen shot shown above ! The distinct arches and lines going thru the bait , creating balls of bait are from feeding fish. I would fish the above screen with a tandem jig combination putting a one ounce jig on top of a 1/2 ounce jig with a 4 inch trailer, I prefer a 3 foot tag line from first jig. Moving the boat via trolling motor can be key, experiment by putting out ghost pole with same set up while you are slabbing just over the top of bait balls. Burn the slab ,reel up five turns and stop and repeat, place slab on bottom and raise pole 6 inches,stop,shake drop again. You are trying to emulate dying or wounded shad.
Establishing a pattern is critical. Once you have, do the same thing on another part of the lake. Water depth and bait depth may change but, the pattern should be consistent.

From what I can see I agree with you that likely catfish mixed in because some of the returns on the bottom are spaced out, an example is seen in bottom right corner of screen within a few feet of bottom.

Gborg
Do you think I had a chance a catching these driving around on my big motor? Do I need to find them on the big one then cruise around on my trolling motor?

I will make some pics of patterns I look for and post.