Tide
There is no one state of tide that is better than another. One mark may fish best at low, another may only fish at high; others may only fish in the middle of an ebb or flooding tide. Only experience fishing your marks will tell you where to be at a particular state of tide. Usually though a bigger tide will encourage better fishing as there is usually more current pushing through.
For more information on what is meant by big, small, spring and neap tides have a look here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tide
Moon
Tide size is controlled by the moon’s position in relation to the earth. Moon phase, in my experience, will affect fishing dramatically. There are other websites that will explain solunar theory in much more detail but as a general rule be sure to fish in the days around new and full moons.
Wind and Swell
Again the only way to find out what is right for a particular mark is to fish it extensively and look at your results. It is worth pointing out though there is no hard and fast rule for all marks. Some marks will require a little chop to the water, others a healthy swell and others flat calm. There are sayings often bandied about in fishing like “West is best” in relation to wind. That may well be on the South West coast of England but on an East facing shore that would be an offshore wind. In general an onshore or cross shore wind will be more productive than an offshore wind. But again this can totally differ from mark to mark. However an onshore wind can cloud the water and bring weed where as an off shore wind can clear.
Water colour
There is some justification in lure anglers obsessing with clearer water for fishing. However, often fairly murky water is perfectly fishable, and in fact, crystal clear water can be the kiss of death to some marks. My ideal conditions would be six to ten foot visibility, but not crystal clear. In clearer water it can help to fish more natural looking lures, with natural colouring. Lures that are in part transparent can help when very clear. When fishing very dirty water, the vibration a lure makes as it travels through the water can be enough on its own for a fish to locate it. Other than that, look to use bolder colours that will stand out against the background. These could be dark lures or bright lures depending on the colour of the water. You are trying to make the lure contrast and silhouette against the environment.
Time of Day
The long thought of peak times for Bass fishing are dawn and dusk. This is when I would concentrate my time when starting out. However it is possible to catch in the middle of the day and is possibly most productive in complete darkness.
I would not recommend fishing at night until you are very familiar with the mark you intend to fish. I would also highly recommend being very sure of the local tide times and would recommend fishing with another angler.
Water temperature
In general it is thought that to catch bass on lures you will need a sea temperatures of at least 10 degrees Celsius. This is not a hard and fast rule but it will give you a good indication of when in the year you should be concentrating your efforts for your area. A helpful tip for fishing lures is that when things are cooler, slow your retrieves down and try to fish deeper in the water. When seas are warmer fish will be more likely to chase baits at higher speed and also to attack baits on the surface. Water temperatures can get too high though, and it is thought that fish can become lethargic at water temperatures over 16 or 17 degrees Celsius. I have no experience of this in my native North East.
Some good websites to check the wind, swell, and temperature of your local marks are:
basslurebasics 