I have found people who have shot befor especially with sites have the hardest time. I never shot and my brother did and I picked it up faster. I do a few thing to help me improve.
1. First I shoot at something on the bottom as soon as we launch. Sometimes it takes on shot and sometimes it takes 10 shots before I'm ready for the fish.
2. When I start I always try to shoot low. It's much easier to adjust up, one or two shots, than to take 10 shots trying to shoot low.
3. Time will improve your shooting. I just started goose hunting which of course you do not use a site. And I stink. I just keep telling myself how bad I was at bowfishing when I started. So I figure next year I can shoot something out of the sky.

 

Great advise from goldenghost. I would only add that you gotta get used to the idea of shooting way under the fish you are aiming for. When your first start out shooting at fish from a moving boat it can take a bit getting used to. There are a ton of variables, speed of the boat, depth of target, distance, size of target, etc... My 2cents is this, when you think your aiming low enough and on target...aim a smidgen lower. The refraction will fool ya every time if you let it. Keep at it Tracker12 you will find your sweetspot.

 

All good advice and definitely shooting from moving boat and fish moving then throw in the variable depth refraction issue to deal with also can give you fits, but have seen all of us suffer from CHS from time to time ...

Couple things we tell newbies or people having issues, if fish is facing straight at you or away from you is don't shoot at the fish, with the length of the fish as long as your left and right is good you'll normally have at least 18" or more of fish to error hi or low and still be in fish, where people tend to shoot high or over fish if facing away from you, aim about 6" at least low of the tail or once find "sweet spot" for depth and conditions your shooting you should be "in the fish" somewhere..


The right to left facing fish IMO are more challenging since you only have the thickness of the fish as a target vs the whole length of the fish....


But in reality the best shots I make is draw and shoot, If I shoot and think alot of times before I shoot I overthink it and mess up, compared to see a fleeing fish and draw swing and follow thru with the shot without even thinking, sometimes even amaze myself.....

 

One more thing to the great advice above. Bowfishing reminds me of golf in that one day or night I'm amazing myself with how good I am getting, the next day it's like I just picked up a bow for the first time. Just enjoy it and let it happen naturally.

 

AIM LOW. I recall some guide telling the story that he has to offer to give five dollars to a lot of newbie clients for them to shoot under a fish. Then they get it. It's like Garp said, there's too many variables to think about. You just have to feel your way through. Instinctive is the only way to go. You may also have equipment problems. Make sure you're tuned properly and have enough arrow speed for the depth/fish you're shooting. If there's much depth or distance involved, throw out any points with flat blades. They plane out too much.

 

Some great advice. I am pretty sure the equipment is not an issue. Shooting a friends bow that kills plenty with it. I do like the idea of taking a few shots when I get out to the water. For the most part we are shooting pretty shallow in the water. Snakeheads in the tribs of the Potomac. They are a pretty thin fish and most of my shots seem to be high. It's frustrating. The last time out I was spot on but yesterday yuk.

 

Sounds just like a case of CHS...... have all gone thru it at one time or another then next trip can't seem to miss anything

 

Best thing is any time you see soda cans, bottles, plastic bags, or any other trash is to shoot it, you'll clean a lot of garbage out of the water and get some good practice while doing it. Just whatever you do do not shoot someone's used pee bottle, it's not fun

 

:laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh: Yeah, it can help with general aim, but can also throw you off because you don't hold under for items on the surface. Unless you fill them with pee to make them sink!

 

I'm glad I'm not alone! What I do helps me out a little. I go to a bridge and shoot from it at stuff like leaves I see floating down in the current under the water. The depths vary this way. I know I don't bob up and down like on a boat but it helps me out.

 

I find that if I don't think about the shot, I at least get close. The moment I draw the bow and start thinking, BOOM, instant miss.

 

Just keep shooting. Shooting, especially snap shooting is all muscle memory and instinct. What we do to practice is to shoot at a ton of shiners/shad and other small fish. Most of those fish don't sit still much and you kind of just have to shoot. You don't feel too bad when you miss cause theyre small but it teaches you just to shoot and helps get your instinct into where the bow is shooting. Would make sure that your arrow is shooting straight too, c if your rest isn't tuned right it gives you crappy arrow flight.

 

Hey

I had offered some advice to someone before about shooting and aiming.. Below is the link (which I hope works), I hope you find it helpful. I made an excel file with a graph for shooting depths

http://bow.fishingcountry.com/forums/showthread.php?133193-Help-shooting&p=1836290#post1836290

 

my graph and aiming advice is at the bottom of that link's forum chat