David Octavius Hill (born 1802 in Perth, died 1870) was a respected Scottish painter and arts activist who collaborated with the engineer and photographic pioneer Robert Adamson (born 1821, died 1848) between 1843 and 1847.
They met whilst Hill was working on a painting depicting the Church of Scotland ministers involved in forming the breakaway Free Church of Scotland in 1843. Being able to photograph 474 people, and paint their likeness at leisure, was the basis of their initial partnership.
Adamson's studio, "Rock House", on Calton Hill in Edinburgh soon became the centre of their photographic experiments. Using the Calotype process, they produced a wide range of portraits (depicting well-known Scottish luminaries of the time, including Hugh Miller), local and Fife landscapes, and several groundbreaking "action" photographs of soldiers and - perhaps their most famous photograph - two priests walking side by side.
Their short partnership of 4 years, due to the ill health of Adamson, produced around 3000 prints.
D. O. Hill is buried in Dean Cemetery, Edinburgh - one of the finest Victorian cemetries in Scotland. He is portrayed in a bust sculpted by his second wife, Amelia R Paton.
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