QHY miniCAM8 Monochrome Camera - Deep Sky Combo
Mini Monochrome Camera, Integrated Filter Wheel — Max Performance!
Create glimmering SHO images or impactful full color images without the hefty space or budget requirements with this incredible all-in-one package! From QHY, the miniCAM8 Monochrome Camera Deep Sky Combo kit gives you the excellent IMX585 sensor, a filter wheel, and a set of seven filters; packing in everything you need to capture stunning stellar shots in crisp detail. Whether you're just entering the monochrome arena or are looking to add a simple, compact, yet powerful addition to your existing gear, you're sure to enjoy this masterful mini mono!
Experience the convenience of an electronic filter wheel, performance of a powerful mono sensor, and 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 mono 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 both a full color LRGB imaging filter set and SHO set at once, with one slot left to spare; and with the Deep Sky Combo kit you have both of these kits on day one. 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, monochrome 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, seven filter set, and powerful supporting electronics packed into this one miniature form-factor device, the QHY miniCAM8 Monochrome 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 mono variant powering this miniCAM8
Monochrome 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: All-in-One Monochrome Imaging Package
While monochrome sensors can provide a boost to your images over
color models, harnessing this performance to create stunning vibrantly
colored images of deep sky objects typically requires more complication,
more components to ensure are compatible, and more cost. With the miniCAM8
Monochrome Camera Deep Sky Combo kit however, QHY is challenging this
reality with a sleek camera and filter wheel package that gives you all the
filters you need at an incredible value! Leave the schematics, darkening
masks, and large filters behind with this simple to load, attach, and use
combo unit. Whether you're interested in capturing broadband imaging,
narrowband imaging, or a blend of both this kit has you covered — with
Luminance, Red, Green, and Blue filters included for full color imaging and
7nm Ha, SII, and OIII narrowband filters packed in for creating SHO pallet
astrophotos. These filters are from XiMei, and will allow you to realize
stunning images of galaxies, star clusters, nebulae, and other incredible
celestial targets!
Superb Supporting Technology
Supporting the miniCAM8
Monochrome'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 Monochrome 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
Monochrome 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 Monochrome
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 |