John Robert Parsons is an Irish photographer and painter, born 1826 and died 1909. He is best known for his photographic series of model Jane Morris commissioned by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. These photos would serve as reference for a number of art pieces including Proserpine, Reverie, and The Blue Silk Dress. The Jane Morris photography series can currently be found within the Birmingham Museums Trust and Victoria and Albert Museum. More information about the series can be found on Rossetti Archive.

Moving to London in 1840, Parsons worked as a painter and between 1850 and 1868 he exhibited several times at the Royal Academy of Arts and Grosvenor Gallery. From 1860 he opened and operated a photo studio in Portman Square. By 1870, Parsons would come to lead a secluded life; he halted his photography practice in 1878. While he declared bankruptcy in 1892, in 1909 it was discovered at the inquest of his death that he had a decent amount of wealth within the apartment and at the bank. Multiple unfinished paintings were strewn across the apartment. This description is a largely a shorted version of the Wikipedia article on John Robert Parsons' life.