It’s my first full year with graphs of any kind so I’m still learning on how to ID fish. I normally can get the picture of what’s happening when there a few fish on the screen but sometimes theres fish everywhere and I start to get confused, I’m not sure if it’s crappie, perch, Cisco, northerns, or bass. Some times there’s fish suspended at a certain depth literally across the whole lake or theres schools that are 20-40ft tall vertically. I can get a little idea with the size of the fish but a 14” crappie and a small bass look identical to me.
Are there any videos online that you recommend for learning how to ID fish on 2d/downscan? 
 

 

Search YouTube for "fish the moment identify bass on graph" and a nice video with the basics will pop up.  

Generally speaking, I don’t use my sonar or down scan to specifically locate fish. I use those tools to locate depth, structure, and habitat that are likely to hold fish. Right now I use mine to find the deep edge of the weed line. Largemouth use these locations during the summer.

 

Certainly you can see fish on them but remember the location of your transducer. What you are seeing on the graph has already passed because the transducer is often located further back than the graph.

fish the moment is a good shout.  Lots on his youtube channel for that.

 

The thing to remember is that if you're talking about a school of fish on the screen, each fish will school differently.  Bass don't like to stack.  They prefer to spread out rather than stack up vertically.  Crappie and blugill have no problems stacking.  Baitfish will tend to ball, so open water baitfish will almost always be in a ball like shape.  Suspended openwater schools are almost always going to be baitfish.  'game' fishes will usually school near cover but be more singular or spread in the open.  Where it gets tough is seeing singles out in the open.  Even with livescope I've been fooled a few times.  This year it was catfish suspended and cruising in a big deep clear lake where I didn't even know there were catfish.  Last year it was crappie in shallow open flat areas where I expected to find bass at the time (crappie and bass look very similar on live imaging).

15 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

fish the moment is a good shout.  Lots on his youtube channel for that.

 

The thing to remember is that if you're talking about a school of fish on the screen, each fish will school differently.  Bass don't like to stack.  They prefer to spread out rather than stack up vertically.  Crappie and blugill have no problems stacking.  Baitfish will tend to ball, so open water baitfish will almost always be in a ball like shape.  Suspended openwater schools are almost always going to be baitfish.  'game' fishes will usually school near cover but be more singular or spread in the open.  Where it gets tough is seeing singles out in the open.  Even with livescope I've been fooled a few times.  This year it was catfish suspended and cruising in a big deep clear lake where I didn't even know there were catfish.  Last year it was crappie in shallow open flat areas where I expected to find bass at the time (crappie and bass look very similar on live imaging).

14 hours ago, gim said:

Generally speaking, I don’t use my sonar or down scan to specifically locate fish. I use those tools to locate depth, structure, and habitat that are likely to hold fish. Right now I use mine to find the deep edge of the weed line. Largemouth use these locations during the summer.

 

Certainly you can see fish on them but remember the location of your transducer. What you are seeing on the graph has already passed because the transducer is often located further back than the graph.

Thanks guys! 
Yeah it’s very helpful for structure too and I definitely have a better understanding on how to use it for that rather than for targeting schooled fish. Lots of the time I’ll see huge schools suspended at 30-40ft over 50-70ft of water. To me it looks like some prey species ( whether it be crappie, perch, whitefish, etc I’m not sure) and sometime I’ll see what looks like a larger/predator species ( not sure if it’s bass, pike or jumbo crappie) under the schools of bait. I’ll waypoint the schools and circle back with traditional baits that guys use to target schooling fish but I’m yet to catch any of these. Because they are down so deep ive never seen them come up to the surface. I’ve seen @WRB-2.0 recommend structure spoons and I plan on trying them soon also. 

35 minutes ago, 10,000 lakes Bassin said:

Thanks guys! 
Yeah it’s very helpful for structure too and I definitely have a better understanding on how to use it for that rather than for targeting schooled fish. Lots of the time I’ll see huge schools suspended at 30-40ft over 50-70ft of water. To me it looks like some prey species ( whether it be crappie, perch, whitefish, etc I’m not sure) and sometime I’ll see what looks like a larger/predator species ( not sure if it’s bass, pike or jumbo crappie) under the schools of bait. I’ll waypoint the schools and circle back with traditional baits that guys use to target schooling fish but I’m yet to catch any of these. Because they are down so deep ive never seen them come up to the surface. I’ve seen @WRB-2.0 recommend structure spoons and I plan on trying them soon also. 

 

Without good knowledge of what they are and without live imaging to target them directly, I'm going to suggest that you will struggle to catch them.  It is hard enough to catch suspended fish in 35' over 70' WITH live imaging where you can see their reactions and where you're presenting your bait.  If they are active, feeding fish in clear water then you might be able to get a bait close enough to them enough time to trigger one.  In that case, try throwing a heavier underspin with a 3-4" paddle tail on the back.  You'll have to count it down and you might be able to use your 2D like a pseudo live imaging if you're sitting in one place to get a feel for the depth.  Then slow roll it back through where the fish are.  Keep in mind they move if you're truly in open water.  Something like a bridge pier they will stay relatively close to the pier, but wide open water is tough.

2 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

It is hard enough to catch suspended

 

I've tried cracking this nut more than once and it was mostly fruitless.  I don't even bother trying anymore.  It's like chasing a ghost.

2 minutes ago, gim said:

 

I've tried cracking this nut more than once and it was mostly fruitless.  I don't even bother trying anymore.  It's like chasing a ghost.

 

Yeah, it's a tough one, especially when you don't know what they are.  That's the hard part about electronics- you're never sure until you catch one.  Some lakes that have a limited set of species you can be fairly sure what they are and if they will eat and if it's worth your time.  If you know they are bass and that it is a bait ball above them you can target them, but catching without FFS is going to take a lot of time.  That said, the catfish on that lake surprised me.  That lake has largemouth and smallmouth, brown/rainbow/lake trout, perch, and sunfish (or so that's all i thought it had).  That's about it aside from baitfish.  Seeing a decent sized single or a pair cruising 15' over 30' should be a bass.  The trout are out in 50' this time of year following the big bait schools.  The perch relate to cover and the bottom.  Occasionally I'll get caught out and mistake 12" bass and perch (they look pretty similar on FFS), but never in a million years did I expect 5-10# catfish cruising like that.  My default lure is a 3" minnow in a very natural color and a 1/8 oz head.  Everything in the lake eats that (or tries) and I can watch them react to it.  Without FFS?  Not worth my time.

I have caught a few of those roaming suspended smallmouth with a jerk bait before.  That was my only time with any amount of success.

On 7/31/2025 at 8:59 AM, 10,000 lakes Bassin said:

Thanks guys! 
Yeah it’s very helpful for structure too and I definitely have a better understanding on how to use it for that rather than for targeting schooled fish. Lots of the time I’ll see huge schools suspended at 30-40ft over 50-70ft of water. To me it looks like some prey species ( whether it be crappie, perch, whitefish, etc I’m not sure) and sometime I’ll see what looks like a larger/predator species ( not sure if it’s bass, pike or jumbo crappie) under the schools of bait. I’ll waypoint the schools and circle back with traditional baits that guys use to target schooling fish but I’m yet to catch any of these. Because they are down so deep ive never seen them come up to the surface. I’ve seen @WRB-2.0 recommend structure spoons and I plan on trying them soon also. 

I was taught that when you see anything you suspect is a suspended school under a bait ball, the first thing you do is drop a Little George (or more current options like a Jackall Deracoup) through the school and slowly yo-yo it several times.

 

Something about a tailspinner helicoptering down triggers them to grab it.