QHY miniCAM8 Color Camera - Deep Sky Combo
A Color Camera and Premium Filters All-in-One!
Capture vivid images of galaxies and sharp and dynamic images of nebulae with a suite of filters all contained in one miniature device! With the QHY miniCAM8 Color Camera Deep Sky Combo kit you'll experience the excellent IMX585 sensor, a filter wheel, and a set of four premium imaging filters; giving you everything you need to capture incredible images of the celestial bodies above. Whether you're looking to build your first astrophotography setup, are looking for an all-in-one solution to add to your existing gear, this premium kit from QHY won't disappoint!
Experience the convenience of an electronic filter wheel, performance of an excellent color sensor, and the incredible results these can realize when paired with quality imaging filters — all in one complete package. With the filter wheel and camera combined into one you can enjoy a simpler to install, simpler to cable manage, and smaller overall multi-filter color imaging solution. This consolidation and miniaturization hasn't come at the cost of capacity or performance either, with the QHY miniCAM8 featuring the popular 1/1.2" Sony IMX585 sensor paired with a TE cooler and 512 MB of DDR3 RAM alongside an 8 slot filter carousel! This allows you to carry a number of handy filters at once, from simple filters for full spectrum imaging to a narrower filters that fight light pollution and hone in on nebulae — allowing you to quickly adapt your camera to different conditions and targets. If you're looking to dive head first into the world of astrophotography, for a quick and easy kit to expand your current imaging equipment, or for an ultra compact yet expansively featured camera to add to a portable build, the QHY miniCAM8 system is an excellent solution for you — allowing you to capture vivid, detailed, and high contrast images of everything from galaxies to nebulae with ease!
Integrated Filter Wheel Design
With other popular mini form factor electronic filter wheels squeezing five 1.25" filters inside their compact housings, it is no understatement to say the miniCAM8's eight filter capacity at around the same diameter is a miniature marvel! This has been made possible with the use of 19 mm x 12 mm rectangular filters, which take up almost 70% less area compared to an 1.25" filter while still comfortably covering the 11.2 mm x 6.3 mm Sony IMX585 sensor. These filters are mounted incredibly close to the sensor itself which not only alleviates vignetting concerns, but also makes for a very compact overall package! It doesn't end with space saving either — this optimized filter and integrated wheel approach also makes the miniCAM8 an incredible value when compared to creating a setup with similar features from popular individual components. Enjoy quick electronic filter changes, color imaging performance, and quality astrophotography filter pallet power with a fraction of the budget!
All-in-One Mono Astrophotography Package
With a Sony Starvis II sensor, integrated eight position filter wheel, four filter set, and powerful supporting electronics packed into this one miniature form-factor device, the QHY miniCAM8 Color Camera Deep Sky Combo kit gives you everything you need to begin maximizing your astrophotography experience!
Starvis II IMX585 Sensor
Capturing the spectacular
skies above is the Sony IMX585! With the color variant powering this
miniCAM8 Color camera you get an excellent peak QE of 92%, large full well
depth of 54k e-, low read noise of 0.76-0.78 e-, and native 12-bit ADC from
the 1/1.2" type sensor. QHY has additionally enhanced the Starvis II
technology that allows for High Dynamic Range (HDR) performance with their
Linearity HDR Mode — which combines high and low gain modes with an
algorithm through software to give you 16-bit dynamic range with a more
linear response throughout the gain range compared to standard HDR, with
only a minor impact on full well and read noise performance (46ke- and 1.0
e-). All this performance pairs with great near-IR sensitivity, zero amp
glow chip, and Back Side Illuminated (BSI) technology to give you
powerful imaging results, providing crisp, dynamic, and detailed
astrophotos of our universe's incredible celestial objects!
Deep Sky Combo: Premium Color Imaging Package
While the Sony IMX585 can provide stellar results on its own, filters
provide an undeniable boost to your astrophotos; and with the Deep Sky Combo
kit, QHY gives you four powerful filters to enhance the miniCAM8's view into
the night sky! For broadband images and darker skies a UV/IR cut filter has
been included that can focus your view on the visible spectrum, blocking
ultraviolet and infrared light which can be poorly focused by some optical
designs and impact your image quality. For less optimal sky conditions, the
Deep Sky Combo kit gives you two strengths of light pollution filtering
— standard (LPF) and heavy (HLP). Finally for a light pollution filtering
profile that is more surgical in its filtering approach that is well suited for
broadband targets and lower color cast, this kit includes a four-channel
enhancement filter (FCE). These filters come from renowned filter
manufacturer Optolong, giving you premium filter performance across the
range of skies and targets this kit covers. If your goal is creating
fantastic images of galaxies, star clusters, nebulae, and more with one-shot
color simplicity, then the miniCAM8 Color Camera Deep Sky Combo kit is for
you!
Superb Supporting Technology
Supporting the miniCAM8
Color Camera's stellar IMX585 sensor are a number of powerful technologies
that push its performance even further! Helping keep your camera's window
into the night sky clear in challenging environments is a dew heater element
which warms the optical window to prevent dew forming. To keep the sensor,
filters, and internals of your camera dew free as well, QHY has additionally
included a desiccant tube that can be filled with your drying agent of
choice and connected to the miniCAM8 housing to dry out the chamber air.
Enhancing the IMX585 itself is a dual-stage Thermo Electric Cooler (TEC),
which is capable of cooling the sensor down to -45°C below ambient
temperature. This cooling helps reduce dark current so you can focus more on
faint details and less on fighting noise! Last, but certainly not least, the
miniCAM8 Color Camera comes equipped with a 512 MB DDR3 memory buffer to
help ensure you have consistent performance even in higher data throughput
situations — a powerful tool to have when using the ROI feature and
high FPS for planetary lucky imaging!
Essential Connections
Connecting the QHY miniCAM8
Color Camera up to your gear is straightforward! To power the camera, QHY
includes a 12V AC adapter, as well as a threaded cable extension which can
securely attach to your miniCAM8 for power delivery that is resistant to
small tugs from momentary snags. Control over both the camera and internal
filter wheel requires just one connection to the device's USB Type-B 3.0
port, which has been made simple with the included high-speed USB-B to USB-A
cable!
Easy to Integrate
Adding the QHY miniCAM8 Color
Camera to your telescope setup is simple! Included in the box are 1.25" and
2" nosepiece to C-mount adapters, allowing the miniCAM8 to easily be
inserted directly into visual compression fittings. For those looking to
make a threaded imaging train the 2" adapter additionally features M48
threads and will set your camera sensor at the industry standard 55 mm of
backfocus — making achieving excellent results with the majority of
today's flatteners, reducers, and coma correctors a breeze!
Astronomy Hub: Your one-stop-shop for Astrophotography Knowledge!
Our Gear Experts have compiled a wealth of information to help expand your astrophotography knowledge! Below you’ll find links to articles, videos and "how-to" guides. Just one more reason that our Astronomy Hub is a one-stop-shop for all your astronomy and astrophotography needs!
| Choosing the Best Deep Sky Camera |
| Why Exposure Time Matters |
| Undersampling and Oversampling in Astrophotography |