I'm an avid fan of Discovery Channel documentaries likePlanet Earth and the recently concluded follow-up series,Life. The shows record in amazing, high-definition claritythe different landscapes that make up our planet and shine aspotlight on the more creative and interesting mammals, birds, andinsects that live and die within them.

If I had to pick my favorite part of each episode, though, I'dgo with the “behind the scenes” clip that wraps up each episode. Inthis portion, viewers are shown the extreme methods used by theseries' crews to capture moments of natural behavior as they existin an undisturbed world. It's typically just as fascinating as thefinished product.

I found that writing this month's cover story resulted in asimilar scenario. A lot of insightful material was left on thecutting-room floor when I wrapped up the research and compositionof “Tricks of the Trade,” which you can read beginning on page 26(or by clicking here!). So I'm going to let you in on some ofthe outtakes.