I did an experiment over the last 2 days that I thougt I'd share:

I've been fishing a popular, very clear, heavily pressured lake for early ice walleyes. Yesterday I was trying out my new camera and had 13 walleyes come right up to my jig, sit there a few seconds, and then turn and leave. I tried raps, Nils Baby Shads, and Swedish Pimples with the same results. I managed to catch one fish that rushed in very quickly and nailed a rap on the fall.

Thinking that scent could be playing a factor, tonight I went back to the same spot. I carefully washed my hands and my jigs with Lindy no-scent soap, and then I added a couple drops of walleye attractant. Of the 5 fish that I saw on the camera tonight, all 5 of them nailed my jigs without hesitation, including a fat 23 incher. Even better, I was the only one out of 6 people fishing the same bar who even had a bite tonight. Many guys reported seeing fish on their FL-8's and then seeing them leave.

Not sure what this means, if anything, it could have been dumb luck, but I'll be dousing my jigs with attractant from now on. Tonight definitely proved that it can't hurt.

I can't think of the name of the stuff right now, but it smelled like a ripe bait bucket on a hot day.

Which camera did you buy, and how do you like it?
I am considering buying one myself, but feedback on cams from folks is few and far between.I do agree with you on the scent being a factor. I've had similar experiences using scent for fishing jumbo perch. The scent factor definitely plays a role in summer fishing, so why not in the winter as well. Nice post with good info. Thanks for the feedback on the camera.

Right now I'm trying out a Vista Cam. I like it better than an Aqua-Vu in that it comes with a bigger TV, so several people can see the picture at the same time. My only compaint so far is with the IR capability. In the spot I'm fishing, there's a lot of plankton. When the IR light hits the plankton, it causes the camera to pick up big blobs of light right close to the lens, making it difficult to see your lure and fish farther away. The Aqua-Vu does the same thing, so there's probably not much you can do about it.

There are lots of rods and PVC contraptions being sold to point and position the camera under the ice, but I've found the easiest is 2 12 inch pieces of 1X2 nailed together to form an X, with a clothespin hot glued to the center of the X. Just lower the camera down and clamp the cable in the clothespin, then rotate the wood X to get the camera pointed at your lure. On my lake, which is very clear, I can put the camera hole about 8 feet from my jigging hole and see the fish come in from a pretty good distance. Murkier water will force you to have the camera a lot closer.

So far I have seen no indication that walleyes care about or even notice the camera.