Texas Fishing Forum

Side Image Help

Posted By: Skippy

Side Image Help - 05/23/20 04:29 PM

I can’t seem to figure out my side imaging on my Lowrance TI5. I’ve had it a couple of years and don’t get to fish much and never used good electronics before that (I was bass fishing and didn’t need it like I do now). It took me a while to get comfortable differentiating bait from fish on my 2D but I’m now confident with that so I’m trying to get a better feel for SI. Hopefully I’ve attached this screenshot. Assuming I did, are those fish on the right side 3/4 of the way down? There were fish all around this spot so I’m thinking they are. If you have any other tips, I’d love to hear them. Thanks.

Attached picture BF0CE542-4B5E-414D-A82E-2A485D3C5163.jpeg
Posted By: MilesHunter

Re: Side Image Help - 05/23/20 06:58 PM

Yes, those are fish. thumb
Posted By: Dennis Christian

Re: Side Image Help - 05/23/20 07:00 PM

That looks like a brush pile with 2 or 3 fish around it. The short white dashes are fish. A school of white bass will look like a bunch of short white dashes.
Posted By: Fonso

Re: Side Image Help - 05/23/20 07:53 PM

yes, i would say fish and close to the bottom because the black sonar shadow is right next to it[Linked Image]
Posted By: Skippy

Re: Side Image Help - 05/24/20 05:15 AM

So the shadow means they are close to bottom?
Posted By: 44 Diesel

Re: Side Image Help - 05/24/20 05:29 AM

Originally Posted by Skippy
So the shadow means they are close to bottom?



Yes on this screenshot. The further the shadow is from the fish the higher in the water column the fish are.
Posted By: gborg

Re: Side Image Help - 05/24/20 12:50 PM

It appears as if there is too much power , contrast too high. Also, may want to change palette to another shade.I would suggest learning to ID from down scan first via a split screen with 2d sonar , then you will see what sonar is showing alongside down scan. Then split screen with 2d sonar along side SI.
Time on the water scouting will flatten the learning curve in short order.
Posted By: Fishbonz

Re: Side Image Help - 05/24/20 01:17 PM

Or you could just book a trip to see the Wizard of lake Fork and have him dail your unit in. coolio Best fishing money you`ll ever spend.
Posted By: Skippy

Re: Side Image Help - 05/24/20 09:10 PM

Thank you for the help. The shadow info helps a lot. Also, I do use down scan next to my 2D to help me get a better idea as to what the fish look like. That has helped as well.
Posted By: chrisc/striper express guide service

Re: Side Image Help - 05/25/20 10:11 PM

I came from using just a flasher for 20 years to getting all the modern stuff and let me tell you I’ve learned to love side imaging and the bass man should come out of you...if it shows anything throw at it :-)
Posted By: Skippy

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 12:06 AM

Ha! That’s more what I’ve been used to. How accurate is it? If I’d cast 30’ to the back right of the boat, and let my bait sink to the bottom, that would theoretically have put me in the middle of those fish?
Posted By: Flippin-Out

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 01:30 AM

No, you can't say it's 30' to the right rear of the boat. If the boat was moving forward, then yes the fish are behind the boat. How far DOWN on that screenshot is not measured in feet - that is TIME.
If you want to cast to those fish, move your cursor "crosshair" to the target image on the sidescan screen, and create a waypoint. You unit is capable of figuring out WHERE that is, but you can't just by looking at the screen. Consider that the screen advances at whatever scroll rate you have set, but the distance covered depends on how fast your boat is moving, so what looks like a certain distance could be 30 feet, or it could be 60 feet. If you make a waypoint, then you can use your map to understand WHERE that waypoint is, and cast to that spot.
Posted By: chrisc/striper express guide service

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 02:00 AM

This is what he means by shadows [Linked Image]
These are active and we are catching off right side. Sorry for all the water stains on the screen but texoma is very salty and it’s really rough when the boat is absolutely still the detail amazes me but on big T it’s very rare I know this is Humminbird but it’s the same principle in the same technology.I am by no means a fishfinder wizard I pretty much use factory settings and just go with it and it shows me all kinds of stuff I also find lots and lots of sunk boats
[Linked Image]
Posted By: RespectTheFish

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 02:16 AM

[Linked Image]
Something I made a while back to show someone this exact thing
Posted By: RespectTheFish

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 02:18 AM

One thing to keep in mind is if you see 10 fish on your graph, there likely is more like 100 fish there. The reason I say that is I tied a 30 pound catfish to a jugline and drove past him probably 20 -30 times and only saw him maybe once every 5-10 passes! You must rely on your technology to put you on the fish consistently but understand its limitations.
Posted By: RespectTheFish

Re: Side Image Help - 05/26/20 03:15 PM

I’ve been thinking about starting a side imagine educational series on my site and YouTube. Here’s what I got so far

https://www.respectthefishguideservice.com/blog-2/side-scanside-imaging-basics
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