Lights, lights and more lights!
Fred Loya's house of lights for the winter season.
It’s true that the Christmas Spirit has finally arrived, and with it the festivities and traditions, such as the Christmas lights. Yet, for the past ten years, El Paso citizens and people from many different places come and see the Fred Loya’s Christmas lights show. This year, Fred Loya has not disappointed with his synchronized choreography of lights and music, which started it’s shows on Dec. 5 and continues every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 6,7 and 8pm with their showings.
This year the Loya’s family has not only put up their light show, but they have also entered the ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” which is a friendly competition to see which family in the country has the best Christmas lights display. The winner would take 50,000 and the chance to be seen on national TV. Fortunately for the Loya family, they beat three other families in their category and won the ultimate $50,000 prize, which will be donated to ten different charities around El Paso.
The show consist of 450,000 lights. 100 thousand more than last year, and it’s technological synchronization amazes many crowds. This light show is about seven minutes long, and features many different types of lights and designs into the show. Including white Christmas trees, a large white star that symbolizes the lone star state, Frosty the Snow Man and Santa Clause. We also see Characters such as Olaf, from Frozen, Christmas Darth Vader, and R2D2 from Star Wars; to name a few.
Many come see this show, including teens or families, and at the end of every show the Loya family gives Hot Chocolate and cookies for the audience. They also have Santa Clause in the Santa’s village part of the property where children can go and ask Santa what they want for Christmas. This event is for the whole family! The Loya home is located at 12001 Paseo de Oro, and it is asked for people to park in Montwood High School, to be able to see the Christmas lights, or if you just want to drive by, you can do so.
Happy Holidays!
About Author
You came up with a good idea – the annual “The Great Christmas Light Fight”- but you didn’t take it far enough.
This is a story about Loya’s lights. That’s fine. But just Loya’s lights make this a story about one local thing not a broader idea like one finds in National Geographic. Many other people, putting up their lights, interacting, having fun, talking to you (interview) about their hopes ($50,000!) would have made this a “Culture” story and that’s what National Geographic is all about.
Think of the possibilities: purchasing lights on the internet or in a Big Box store. Assembling the crew to do the “stringing.” Drawing the designs, on paper. People carrying their ladders over their shoulders (this would add nice action) shoulders. Close ups of hands and faces as they attach the lights. The proud owner -and family and friends- as they stand looking at the final “product.”
Being more thorough would have also led you to images in different “lights” meaning not just all at night in one time and space (more or less). You needed variety of Light to change the rhythm of your story. The way it is here, is that it looks like it was all done in one or two hours which is exactly what a National Geographic story isn’t.
Then repeat, with the competitors’ displays.
Immersion in the story, variety of content, and thoroughness is what gives a story “depth.” In a National Geographic story you have to be thinking about about Culture and Geography. In this case that means the geography of the Christmas displays and the People that go into making it what it is.
To summarize: Great idea. Not taken far enough to support your story idea (The Great Christmas Light Fight”).