Deise Jefinny
Deise Jefinny is a Brazilian American Polish photojournalist and entrepreneur based in South Florida for the past 20 years.
After leaving high school she bought her first camera and enrolled in a photography class in Porto Alegre, RS. Right after finishing the class, she started working on a high-end photo lab where she was processing slides and color photography manually. There, her passion for artistic photography only grew as she learned all the techniques to make photograph into art without the use of digital technology or Photoshop.
She worked with the best national photographers in Brazil and that gave her a sense of what she could create when she put herself behind the camera.
Searching for better opportunities as a photographer Deise Jefinny moved to the northeast of Brazil to Fortaleza City. She fell in love with the abundant light as the city is called “City of the Sun” and also with the local culture that preserved their artistic traditions passing them from generations since colonial times. There she started documenting all types of cultural manifestations such as Maracatu, Reisado, Junine celebrations and other popular manifestations.
She documented renowned national and international artists’ exhibitions and performances of dance, concerts, classical music, poetry, artists and sculptors. That opened new opportunities and she started working with renowned Brazilian filmmakers doing still photography and collaborations with local newspapers for their art sections. Deise also has extensive work documenting the Eleazar de Caravalho Camera Orchestra (ORCEC) the official Ceara State Orchestra. Deise also participated on state educational programs to teach Photography classes to low-income students.
Deise loves to work with natural light avoiding the use of flash. She feels that with natural light she is able to capture the essence of the persona, the character of her subject. She uses natural light as a tool to bring the colors and drama to the scene she is working on. Her work often brings the spectator to feel like they are intimate with the subject and participating on the scene.
Facebook: @DeiseJefinnyPhotography
Instagram: @DeiseJefinny
“The word photograph means ‘to write with light.’ I play with dark and light, lines and depth, evoking the viewer’s emotions with my images; I write poetry with light.” ~ Deise Jefinny
