Both techniques work - it's a matter of using the system that suits the angler. Lures are very convenient because they are in the tackle box, ready to go, and a wide variety of tropical fish find them highly attractive. Bait fishing means gathering live mullet, herring, prawns or yabbies in a cast net or bait pump. Frozen baits like prawns, squid, whole fish, whitebait and pilchards can all be purchased from the bait shop and all work well. There are also some locations where the water is too deep for lures to work well and bait is the only choice.
Many anglers use both styles depending on what's happening and what suits the fish at the time.
The mainstay of tropical bait gathering is a cast net which can quickly harvest a wide range of small fish and prawns. Yabbies are collected with a bait pump and plenty of elbow grease. Most lure fishing is aimed at barramundi and mangrove jack although a host of other species also attack lures. In basic terms anything that looks like a small mullet is about right and there are heaps of well made Australian lures that will catch the fish. The lures need to be both shallow running minnows and deep divers to cover the available options.