Why take the team to a winery?
Because nobody’s checking their inbox when they’re looking at a ridge line.
Loudoun and Fauquier are close enough for a day trip from DC and far enough to feel like you left. Wineries like Stone Tower in Leesburg and Breaux in Purcellville host groups, and down in Bealeton, Morais Vineyards has a private event venue on the estate.
What’s the light like?
I’ve spent early mornings in vineyards out here, and the light changes fast.
Early, there’s often fog in the rows, and it’s beautiful. By late morning the sun’s high and the shadows go hard. The last hour before sunset is the warmest light you’ll get all day.
Inside, most tasting rooms are built around a window wall. That’s the best seat in the house for a talk or a meal, so put your speaker with the view behind the room, not behind them.
When should we do the group photo?
Before lunch or in the last hour of the day. Not at noon, and not after the second tasting.
Pick the spot when you get there, with the vines or the hills behind everyone. It takes a few minutes, and it’s the one picture everybody wants.
What if it rains?
Ask the winery what’s covered: a barn, a pavilion, a porch. Rain looks good from under a roof, and a wet vineyard has a lot of color.
The plan B room should be one you’d be happy to be photographed in, because if it rains, it’s the only room in the pictures.
I’ve photographed out in Warrenton, The Plains and Middleburg, and I’m based in Northern Virginia. You can see a Fauquier estate photographed empty, the way a planner sees it, on Morais Vineyards. More of my company work is on Corporate Events.
