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It took a little while but they finally arrived… The QHY268M cooled cmos camera and QHYCFW3L 7-position filer wheel!
I’ve been waiting eagerly for this pair as it will be a return to monochrome imaging for me. I did monochrome imaging for a few years but the latter half of 2019 and through 2020 I was using the QHY168C and QHY268C OSC cooled cmos cameras.
The difference between monochrome and OSC imaging is basically this. With a OSC camera you capture all colours at the same time (R-G-B) and get a colour image. With a monochrome camera you acquire the colour channels individually through filters (red, green and blue) and then combine those images to create your colour photo. Often with monochrome there’s an additional clear filter used called “luminance” or “lum” for short. This captures all light wavelengths (while blocking UV and IR) and this lum image is added to the RGB image to give it increased brightness and detail.
The QHY268M is a dedicated astronomy camera, cooled cmos type. It combines 26MP ultra high resolution with small pixels of just 3.76 microns in size and is native 16bit. This delivers extremely sharp images. It uses the Sony Sony IMX571 APS-C sized sensor and is back illuminated with low dark current using SONY’s Exmor BSI CMOS technology. It has Ultra Low Read Noise and uses an electronic shutter (vs mechanical shutter) for high-reliability and stability.
One benefit of the back-illuminated CMOS structure is improved full well capacity. This is particularly helpful for sensors with small pixels. Even with unbinned 3.76 um pixels the QHY268M has a full well capacity of 50ke-.
The QHYCFW3L is a third generation motorized filter wheel. It can hold seven 2″ threaded filters or seven 50mm round filters. QHYCCD selected a high quality ultra-thin hybrid stepper motor for the 3rd generation filter wheel design. Compared to the PM stepper motor used in many filter wheels, the hybrid stepper motor has higher precision, smaller step angle, and is more expensive. The motor is enclosed to prevent dust from entering the motor, thus improving reliability and motor life. The direction of filter rotation can be reversed: The filter carousel can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise to complete the rotation quickly which is very convenient.
QHY268M specifications:
- ADC16 bit
- Anti Dew Heater
- Back Focus17.5 mm
- Buffer2 GB DDR3
- Camera Connection Female M54x.75
- Monochrome
Cooled (-35C deg) - Dynamic Range14.1 Stops
- Full Well51ke
- Max Frame Rate 50fps
- Mega Pixels 26.4 MP
- Peak QE 78%
- Pixel Array 6280 x 4210
Pixel Size 3.76 microns - USB 3.0
- Read Noise 3e
- Sensor Diagonal 28.4 mm
- Sensor Size C Format
- Sensor Type CMOS
- Sensor Sony IMX571
Ready to get into monochrome astrophotography with the high quality and high performance of QHY?…
My story began more than 40 years ago looking up at the Moon with a small telescope my Father had. Encouraged by my parents, who bought me my very own telescope, a 4.5″ reflector, I began to explore the night sky from my family home backyard. Today I do astrophotography from my home in Kitchener, Ontario and also with remote telescopes located in New Mexico and Australia. Some of my images have won awards and have been featured online and in magazines.
