A North Texas family whose holiday light display features 400 drones won ABC's Great Christmas Light Fight on Sunday, December 3.

The Ward family of Keller not only took home the trophy and $50,000 from the reality show contest, but did so by presenting the series' first-ever drone performance - a spectacle which host Carter Oosterhouse declared "changed the way Christmas can be displayed."

Spearheaded by Preston Ward, chief pilot of Sky Elements Drone Shows , the family's display included 20,000 pixel-pushed lights, eight moving heads, talking Christmas trees, and 400 drones that flew 400 feet in the air to create 300-foot wide images that could be seen for five miles, he said.

Preston Ward was joined in the efforts by his wife, Tara, their friend and Sky Elements colleague Tyler Johnson, and his wife, Taylor - “a group of best friends that have a passion for technology and lights,” they described themselves on the show. They said they spent months not only designing the animated drone show but securing licensing and approvals for it to fly.

On The Great Christmas Light Fight , four family homes across the country compete for holiday light glory. The Wards' episode was filmed in fall of 2022. They competed against families in Highlands Ranch, Colorado; New City, New York; and Chula Vista, California.

The Wards and their team members who worked on the winning show. Photo courtesy of Sky Elements Drone Shows

"Are you ready to take Christmas into the future?” they asked judge and host Oosterhouse when they lit up the display for the TV cameras.

The house and front yard illuminated first, with Christmas trees, candy canes, and Santa and his reindeer lighting up in a more traditional light show. A few seconds later, the drones rose high over the house, forming snowflakes, then morphing into presents, Santa coming out of a chimney, the words "Merry Christmas," and more.

Oosterhouse seemed genuinely awe-struck. "I don’t even know how to describe it because it's fluid and it's movement and it’s turning into so many different things," he said while watching it. "I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”

Behind the scenes, they revealed to Oosterhouse how they use 3-D models to design the drone animations, program them to fly six feet apart, and map out where each one goes. The drones lift off from the ground at an impressive 70 miles per hour.

The final image the drones created for Oosterhouse was of the Great Christmas Light Fight trophy the Wards were hoping to win.

In the end, it was really no contest.

“I wasn’t expecting to come to Keller, Texas, and see one of the most unique things this competition has ever seen,” Oosterhouse said on the show. “This was is so unique because it takes your senses over to another level. It’s so impressive.”

Preston Ward praised the hard work that each team member put in, to both design and execute the high-tech display. "This was such an incredible experience and I couldn’t imagine doing it with anyone else besides my best friends here,” he said upon accepting the trophy.

In an act of seasonal charity, the Wards are donating their $50,000 prize money to the Dallas Hope Mommies , a nonprofit that supports families dealing with the loss of a child. The family became connected to the cause after the loss of their infant daughter Briley in 2020, a release says.

The public will get to see the as-seen-on-TV drone show for three nights only, December 8-10. Photo courtesy of Sky Elements Drone Shows

The Wards and Sky Elements will present their "seen on TV" drone show to the public for three nights, December 8-10, at 7 pm and 8:30 pm. The free, family-friendly show will take place at 1729 Sawtooth Oak Trail, Keller (76248), with parking available at Northwood Church.

Follow Preston Ward and Sky Elements on social media for more information and updates. For longer lists of the best Christmas light displays across DFW, go here and here .

The Wards' episode of The Great Christmas Light Fight (Season 11, Episode 2) is now streaming on Hulu .