Rattus

Forum username: rattus
Real name: Martyn
Posts: 269
Active years: 2003–2007
Primary forums: Photography Gear and Technique, Lights/Strobes/Lighting Technique
Specialization: DIY housing modifications, Sea & Sea housings, Inon strobes

Community Role

Rattus (Martyn) was an active Wetpixel member during the mid-2000s DSLR revolution in underwater photography. Based in the UK, he was best known for his impressive DIY engineering skills, most notably his custom modification to fit an Inon/Hugyfot 45-degree viewfinder into a Sea & Sea DX-5D housing — a project that drew widespread admiration from the community, including praise from Alex Mustard, who suggested Martyn could start a business retrofitting viewfinders to various housings.

Martyn was a practical, hands-on contributor who combined machining skills with deep knowledge of underwater photography gear. He purchased a lathe and delrin stock specifically for his viewfinder modification project, demonstrating the level of dedication that characterized Wetpixel’s most engaged members.

Notable Contributions

• Inon/Hugyfot viewfinder modification: In December 2006, Rattus posted his most celebrated contribution — a detailed thread documenting how he machined a custom adapter to fit a Hugyfot assembly with an Inon 45-degree viewfinder into his Sea & Sea DX-5D housing. The modification allowed him to see all four corners of the Canon 5D’s large viewfinder. He provided technical schematics showing o-ring slots, split ring flanges, and the overall adapter design. The 43-reply thread attracted interest from Alex Mustard, Trevor Rees, and Udo van Dongen, who had provided guidance and reference photos during the project (^[1]).

• Inon battery troubleshooting: Rattus started a useful diagnostic thread about Inon D-2000 battery compatibility issues, discovering that NiMH batteries sometimes failed to power up the strobe despite Inon’s stated compatibility. Alex Mustard and other members helped identify contact issues as the likely cause (^[2]).

• Article commenting: With 10 article comments, Rattus regularly engaged with Wetpixel’s editorial content, contributing to discussions about Sea & Sea, Nexus, and Aquatica gear reviews.

• Housing latch discussions: Rattus contributed knowledgeable posts on housing design topics, including Subal latch safety discussions where he noted that Ikelite and Hugyfot used different latch mechanisms (^[3]).

Equipment

• Sea & Sea DX-5D housing (Canon 5D)
• Inon D-2000 strobes
• Custom-machined Hugyfot/Inon 45-degree viewfinder adapter

Activity Profile

• First post: August 2003
• Peak years: 2006–2007
• Threads started: 14
• Last appearance: April 2007
• Forum focus: Photography gear (especially Sea & Sea, Inon, and Hugyfot equipment), DIY modifications