This photograph documents Wilbur Wright’s failed attempt to break a world record for longest flight duration in the Wright Flyer III. J. Thézard captured the plane at dusk, silhouetted against the clouds, just as the window for record-breaking was closing, as flight time was not measured after sundown. Despite aviation’s exciting potential, many critics were skeptical of its advantages. Wright’s attempts to disprove the skeptics were assisted by photographers like Thézard, who not only documented the flights but also utilized photography to dramatize and celebrate these early, brave efforts in aviation.