jpsdad,
As kids, we would see bass along the shoreline at night with a flashlight.
Usually, they were oriented on some piece of structure. If there was just a small root ball in the water, you could see two 5-6" bass and a BG just hanging out suspended.
Frequently, we might see some forage fish, but that was in heavier/thicker cover.
Since I was usually out during summer, there were frequently water bugs going over the bass and BG in their location. I don't know if the bass and BG were in their "bedroom" for the night, or if they were just waiting for a minnow to eat a bug, and they were then ready to get the minnow?
You might want to put a bug light out on your dock to observe your bass population? I have also seen bass with a flashlight that were hanging out at night near the bug light at the dock. Even though those bass were too big to eat the bugs.
I have never seen a big bass with a flashlight. However, I have seen gigantic carp.
