Sara Kempner

Photos

Sara is a freelance photographer based out of Cumberland. Born and raised in the Comox Valley, she developed an early appreciation for the outdoors, which has heavily influenced her photography and lifestyle. Sara’s passion for travel has taken her all over the world, but Vancouver Island will always be her favourite place. While her first love was landscape and nature photography, Sara’s passion for capturing memories for people as they do what they love has evolved her business into active lifestyle, event, and sport photography as well. When not working, you can find Sara out mountain biking, snowboarding, or just wandering the forest, camera in hand.

Connect with Sara

sarakempnerphotography.ca

Volume

29

FELLOWSHIP OF THE FOREST

Words by Dawn Copeman

Photo by Sara Kempner

Along the Cumberland Trail Network, you’re sure to be in good company. “Expect mountain bikes, hikers, runners, dogs, children, and...

Volume

28

LITTLE VALLEY: AVA THOMAS

Photo by Sara Kempner

Our young residents reflect on the home they’re growing up in. My name is Ava, and I am ten years old. I was born in Vancouver and moved...

Volume

28

BREWMOX VALLEY 2.0

Words by Max Oudendag

Photos by Sara Kempner

Not even a pandemic has stopped our growing love for local craft beer. When I wrote The New Brewmox Valley for the inaugural issue of this...

Volume

27

COMOX VALLEY STARGAZING

Words & Photos by Sara Kempner

How to explore space from your own backyard. Fighting the urge to crawl back into my warm bed, I force myself to grab my camera bag and head...

Volume

17

ROCK BEATS WATER

Words by Ryan Stuart

Opening photo by Sara Kempner

Gallery photo by Crystal Chowdhury

For climbers, the attraction of Comox Lake has always been the cliffs. Watching John Waters scramble up a rock face is like watching a...

Volume

26

REIMAGINING REGIONAL RECREATION

Words by Andrew Findlay

Photos by Sara Kempner

Four local governments working together for better parks and recreation management? It could be a reality very soon. Imagine three...

Volume

26

WELCOME TO HISTORIC CUMBERLAND

Words by Dawn Copeman

Photo by Sara Kempner

The newly renovated Cumberland Museum offers more stories and more points of view. A few years ago, there was a local kerfuffle because a...

Volume

26

BEYOND FARMING FOOD

Words by Bevin Clempson

Photos by Sara Kempner

How one local’s getting creative with her land. At the end of a dirt road, minutes from the sea, sits an idyllic farm. Youthful alder,...

Volume

25

FEATURED WORDS: KUS-KUS-SUM

Words by Lorin Medley

Photo by Sara Kempner

1. Field’s sawmill A burial site with ghost bodies on platforms in treesretaining walls at the river’s edge log booms...

Volume

25

PEDDLERS OF DELICIOUSNESS

Words by James McKerricher

Photos by Sara Kempner

Local food trucks do more than serve quick and tasty food. They help connect the community. The Comox Valley has long been home to an...

Volume

25

SUPERSONIC MEMORIES

Words by Rick Zyvitski

Article photo by Sara Kempner

Tour the Comox Air Force Museum with a former Canadian Forces fighter pilot. Editor’s note: Rick Zyvitski, now retired, used to fly...

Volume

25

THE NATURE CURE

Words by Shawn Peters

Photo by Sara Kempner

The Comox Valley isn’t just a pretty place—it can heal what ails you. It is no secret that the Comox Valley offers us a unique...

Volume

24

MUD, MESS, AND MAGIC

Words by Britt Hanson

Photos by Sara Kempner

Making a case for outdoor education. I respectfully acknowledge that we are on the unceded traditional territories of the K’ómoks First...

Volume

23

FROM FENCE BOARDS TO SURFBOARDS

Words by Dave Nowak

Photo by Sara Kempner

No foam here: old cedar takes on new life in handcrafted heirloom surfboards. When you first look at a Waterman surfboard, you wouldn’t...

Volume

22

THE ART OF THE ARCHTOP

Words by Jen Groundwater

Photo by Sara Kempner

At the pinnacle of guitar making, you might just find Comox Valley luthier Wyatt Wilkie. Musical wizardry is something I’ve always...

May

3

ONLINE ONLY

Shelter From A Storm

Categories Covid-19, Online Only

Exploring the wonders next door at home during COVID-19 “Huh,” I think as my gaze follows the path squirming off into the forest. “I’ve never...

Volume

21

THE SONSHINE LUNCH CLUB: A LOCAL LIFELINE

Words by Mac Newton

Photo by Sara Kempner

Turns out there is such a thing as a free lunch. Five days a week, the Sonshine Lunch Club in Courtenay provides a nutritious meal and a gathering place for...

Volume

20

WHERE YOUR HEART IS

Opening Introduction by Allie Jenkinson

Photo by Sara Kempner

“I discovered mountain rivers late, for I was a prairie child… All I knew was that it was pure delight to be where the land lifted in peaks and plunged in...

Volume

19

WHEREVER HELP IS NEEDED

Words by Mac Newton

Photo by Sara Kempner

Celebrating 10 years in the Valley, the Comox Bay Care Society’s mobile Care-A-Van continues to drive forth positive values in our community....

Volume

18

ABANDON SHIP

Words by Ryan Stuart

Photo by Sara Kempner

Orphaned by their owners, a number of derelict boats litter the shores of Comox Harbour. Due to murky jurisdiction and a lack of accountability, they’ll...

Volume

16

STANDING TALL

Words by Roger Albert

Article photo by Jenn Dykstra

Gallery photos by Sara Kempner

Karver Everson and Randy Frank are resurrecting a style of totem pole carving traditional to the K’ómoks people. Their Guardian poles continue to be raised...

Volume

15

FAMILY FRAMEWORK

Words by Jamie McCue

Photos by Sara Kempner

The A-frame is an architectural style that needs little explanation, aptly named for its high peak and steep angles. A-frame popularity can be attributed to a...

Volume

14

THE NATIVE SONS HALL

Words by Kerry Hale

Photos by Sara Kempner

The history of a storied and culturally significant building in the heart of our community Long known as “the cultural heart of...

Volume

12

Coffee & Coastlines in Peru

Words & Photos by Sara Kempner

My first impressions of Peru came on a domestic flight between Lima and Cusco. Bleary eyed after 20 hours of travel from Vancouver Island, I sat on the plane...

Volume

11

Cody ‘Beaver’ LaFrance

Words by Dan LaFrance

Article photo by Sara Kempner

Gallery photos by Dan LaFrance

The evolution of a visionary carver At the tender young age of eight, while attending Quadra Elementary School, Cody LaFrance (Beaver)...

Volume

9

Finding our way: Learning lessons on the mountain

Words by Mike Mccall

Photos by Sara Kempner

Navigation is integral to our daily lives. It’s not just for seafarers, mountaineers or explorers, but a learned skill that is used by most of us every day....

Volume

8

Angling For More Than A Fish

Words By Myles Armstead

Photos By Sara Kempner

Musings of a Comox Valley fly fisher. My earliest memory of holding a fly rod was on the Cowichan River, at the age of seven, in...

Volume

7

Lost In The Wilderness

Words & Photos By Sara Kempner

A close encounter with the Cumberland Lake Wilderness Society For those of us fortunate to live in the Comox Valley, we find ourselves...

Volume

6

Outside In

Words By Tao Werner

Photos By Sara Kempner

A young man’s journey from the forest to the Banff International Film and Book Festival. Being outside is one of the most...

Volume

6

Collective Efforts: Lifelong Learning

Words By Sue Loveless

Photo By Sara Kempner

Community education thrives in Cumberland. When the dismissal bell rings at Cumberland Community School, the day is far from over....

Volume

4

Memories of Chinatown

Words By Dawn Copeman

Intro Photo By Ed Brooks

Gallery Photos By Sara Kempner

Walking along the old Wellington Railway trail where alder, hard hack and osier dogwood create a bower of beautiful for wildlife, I smell the coal dust still...

Volume

3

Shared Source

Words By Meaghan Cursons

Photos By Ian Adams

And Sara Kempner

The Comox Lake watershed is beautiful. The bird’s eye view is truly epic. Crystal clear icy water flows down from the Comox Glacier and craggy snow topped...

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