what color do you use??

[XII Outdoors]

Is the rule............... dark day dark colors/light day bright colors.....or........ dark day light colors/light day dark colors ?         

[JustOsmo]

I have always been told dark color for dark water and light colors for clear/light water.

[muskymagic]

What are we fishing for lol?..

[BBK]

Match the hatch. If you are fishing a pond with bluegill you do not want to be throwing a white spinnerbait, with a lake full of shad you do not want to be throwing a black buzzbait.. you get the idea. Find out what the fish are eating and try to get as close to that as possible, if they dont hit that then play with other colors.

[slipperybob]

I follow that rule very loosely.  Or is it that I barely even follow that rule? 

I rather subscribe to natural patterns and color vs unrealistic patterns and colors.  Camoflage vs High Contrast.

[JRSwillow]

ha the question you asked will be answered right now-dark day dark colors/light day bright colors

[XII Outdoors]

the most of the answers I have received is dark day dark color/light color bright day.................thanks for the info........for some reason i had it backwards..........maybe thats why my season has not been a success so far.........i lost that bet 

[sull155]

dark day dark colors, light day bright colors

[SmallieBigs]

dark day dark colors, light day bright colors

Absolutely...the darker colors actually give a better contrast on stained water/dark days...It is better to use translucent colors or "realistic baits that match the hatch" on clear/bright days. However you will do better to worry more about water clarity than how bright the day is IMO

This could mean several different things though. For example, In the Mohawk River fishing for smallies your best bet is to immitate a crayfish. I would use a darker green or brown color tube in stained/murky water and on the rare occasions it is somewhat clear I go to a much lighter almost yellow green tube and do very well.   

[CoreyL302]

Match the hatch. If you are fishing a pond with bluegill you do not want to be throwing a white spinnerbait, with a lake full of shad you do not want to be throwing a black buzzbait.. you get the idea. Find out what the fish are eating and try to get as close to that as possible, if they dont hit that then play with other colors.

My luck usally comes with dark colors light day / dark day bright colors Also applys to clear and stained water too, Thats after what BBK said  

[fish_finder]

To tell you the truth i find that every day is different, last year i remember one day in particular it poured rain all day long and the only thing we would get hits off of were orange and firetiger, another day ive seen it clear with out a cloud and fish were hitting black , water clarity and presentation ie fast vs slow are more important that whether or not its cloudy

[slipperybob]

I agree that presentation techniques far outweigh color, but choice of color can help along with the presentation technique.

[Litchfield Fisher]

bass = green and red worms and tubes, crappie= white or green and throwing spinners for trout I start with a white spinner with chrome blade on bright days, and an orange spinner with gold blade on dark days, if possible I throw something to match the hatch

[slipperybob]

Colors that defy the norm are UV reflective colors like neon green, hot pink, and blaze orange.    The profile of these lures are much more pronounced even though they may appear to be light color to our eyes.

[Zorros shack]

"dark day light colors/light day dark colors" That part you got right!!!! So do this.