After buying every bait/color under the sun when I first started, I now use only two colors and it's 99% of the time a hair jig-orange/chartreuse and black/chartreuse. The black if it's really muddy and orange/chartreuse the rest of the time. I'm in SW La so no such thing as clear water anywhere. I suppose if I'd ever fish clear water, I'd go with something white or more natural.