I just started as well. I have had some good days and more bad days. I bought a couple of books and a video. Mostly they say to fish the seams ie where the fast water and the slow water colide. Also just like drift fishing behind large rocks where the seams are and the water back washes a little. I have found that the closer I fish to the bank in the places I described above the better I have done. But I have also had days where the fish surfaced less than 10 feet away from me and no matter what I threw out the fish would not hit the jig. I think the best thing to start out with is a balsa wook float. I like the one with a wire out the bottom that is the largest size I could find at my local out door store. It is big enough to handle an 1/8 oz. jig and 4 split shot and still float in fast water. I use 2-2.5 feet of stiff leader with some split shot on it to keep it down in the upward eddies. Some use a foam bobber the size depends on the size of jig you use or the amount of weight you want to use. I have found the smaller jigs work well but I am sure that it depends on the day and how the bite is and the time of day and the water you are fishing. The color; I have caught fish on all kinds of different colors. Pink is a good one to go with. Black and purple with a red head. It really is hard to say what are the best ones becuase I think that it depends on the day and what the fish want. One other thing, try using small pieces of shrimp/sand shrimp for some scent. I hope this helps. Good luck and good hunting.