Starry sky is fascinating, but capturing it on a smartphone is not an easy task. Even Xiaomi’s flagship with advanced cameras requires the right setup, preparation and patience to get clear shots of the Milky Way or star tracks. In this article, we will break down all the steps: from the selection of equipment to post-processing, taking into account the features of the firmware MIUI and hardware limitations of budget models.
You’ll learn which Xiaomi models do better with astrophotography (spoiler: not just Xiaomi 13 Ultra), how to get around the limitations of a regular camera with third-party apps, and why. RAW-The format is your biggest ally in the fight for detail, and we'll also uncover secrets that are rarely mentioned in standard guides, from calibrating white balance on the moon to using GCam with modified profiles for nighttime shooting.
Ready to turn your Xiaomi into a spaceflight tool? Then we get going -- and remember, 50 percent of success depends on getting ready, not pressing the shutter button.
What Xiaomi smartphones are suitable for shooting the starry sky
Not all Xiaomi models are equally good for astrophotography. Key factors: matrix size, manual mode support, ability to shoot in the same way. RAW, and, critically, the luminous strength of the lens (the smaller the number after the "f/", Here's a quick ranking:
- 🥇 Xiaomi 13 Ultra / 14 Ultra: 1-Sony inch-matrix IMX989, f/1.9–f/4.0, support RAW 14-bit. The Best Choice for a Serious Shooting.
- 🥈 Xiaomi 12S Ultra / Mix Fold 3: similar matrix, but without some of the latest flagships.
- 🥉 Redmi Note 12 Pro+ / POCO F5 Pro: 200-MP sensor with pixel binning 4-in-1, f/1.69. Budget option with decent potential.
- ⚠️ Xiaomi 11T Pro and older: weak aperture (f/1.75) and the lack of a full manual mode in the standard application.
Models with telephoto lenses (such as the Xiaomi 13 Pro) allow you to shoot the moon in detail, but for wide landscapes with the Milky Way, they are less convenient because of the narrow angle. MIUI Often limits shutter speed to 30 seconds -- not enough for deep space. Solution: GCam or Camera FV-5.
⚠️ Note: Xiaomi with Snapdragon processors 4xx/6xx (Like Redmi. 10A) filming RAW It can cause overheating and automatically shut down the camera!
| Model | Max. Excerpt (staff camera) | Support for RAW | Main camera light | Suitability for astrophoto |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xiaomi 14 Ultra | 30 | Yes (14-bit) | f/1.9–f/4.0 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| POCO F5 Pro | 32 | Yes (12-bit) | f/1.69 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Redmi Note 12 Pro | 10. | No. | f/1.9 | ⭐⭐ |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite NE | 4 | No. | f/1.8 | ⭐ |
Preparation of the smartphone: settings and applications
Before going out "hunting" for stars, set up your smartphone:
- Turn off all energy saving modes. Go to Settings. → Battery → Performance mode and select "Maximum Performance" to prevent the camera from automatically shutting down during long shutter speeds.
- Activate Developer Mode and turn on Do not turn off the screen while charging (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Tap 7 times, then return to the additional → For developers).
- Install applications: 📱 GCam (versions from BSG Wichaya with Astrophotography Mode). 🌌 Camera FV-5 ProCam X for manual control ISO and excerpts. 🗺️ PhotoPills or Stellarium Mobile for shooting planning (position of the Milky Way, phase of the moon).
Critical point: in GCam you need to download a config (xml file) for your model. 13 Ultra is suitable for configuration from Urnyx05 You can download it from the forum for Night Sight. XDA Developers or in telegram channels like @gcamxiaomi.
Power saving mode is turned off |
Battery charge > 70%|
Installed by GCam + model-configuration|
Cleared memory (minimum 2 GB free)|
Notifications and geolocation disabled (except astro applications)-->
Remember to cool: long shutter speeds warm your smartphone. Use cooling pad for your phone or shoot in cool weather (optimally: +5°S…+15°At temperatures below 0°The battery goes down faster, and the matrix can make noise".
Equipment: What you need besides a smartphone
Even with the top Xiaomi, you can not do without additional equipment.
- 📸 Tripod: mandatory! Any one with a smartphone mount (e.g. Ulanzi) will do. MT-08 You need a tripod with a rotary head to shoot star tracks for smooth movement.
- ⚡ Powerbank with Quick Charge 3.0 support+. Shooting in RAW And long shutter speeds drain the battery in 1-2 hours.
- 🔦 A red flashlight (or an app like Red Flashlight) that can damage night vision and interfere with focus.
- 🔭 Binoculars (optional): will help to more accurately target nebulae or constellations.
Lifehack: If there is no tripod, use it DIY-The solution is a stack of books folded up, or a bag of rice as a support, so the main thing is that the smartphone is completely stationary while shooting, even microvibrations from the wind or a passing car will spoil the shot.
⚠️ Warning: Don’t use wireless charging while shooting! induction currents create interference that manifests in photos in the form of colored artifacts (especially noticeable on Xiaomi with a metal body).
How do you do it? DIY-smartphone-holder
Camera settings for shooting stars
Now, the most important thing is settings, and the settings depend on the conditions (city/nature, moon phase), but there are universal guidelines.
| Parameter | City (light pollution) | Nature (dark sky) |
|---|---|---|
| Format | JPEG + RAW | RAW (necessarily!) |
| ISO | 1600–3200 | 3200–6400 |
| Excerpt. | 10-20 s. | 20-30s |
| Diaphragm | Open as much as possible (e.g., f/1.7) | Open as much as possible. |
| White balance | 3500–4000K | 4000–5000K |
In GCam, use Night Sight mode with manual settings:
- Open Night Sight and tap on the icon 🌙 top-up.
- Install. ISO 3200, shutter speed of 20-30 seconds (depending on the model).
- Turn on Astrophotography Mode (will appear automatically when detecting dark environments).
- Turn it off. HDR+ — It adds noise at long exposures.
In Camera. FV-5:
- Select Manual mode.
- Set Focus to Infinity (Icon) ∞). Some Xiaomis (such as the Redmi Note 11) will have to use the same app. AF Lock after manual focusing.
- Activate. RAW Noise Reduction (but not more than 50%) or you will lose details).
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If you see purple spots in the pictures, it's a chromatic aberration of cheap lenses. Solution: reduce the aperture by 1–2 steps (e.g. with f/1.8 before f/2.2) Or use the correction in Lightroom (Deflation tool).
Critical detail: on Xiaomi with Sony matrices IMX (for example, IMX707 Xiaomi 12 Pro with ISO And above 6400, you get green noise, green pixel artifacts. ISO 3200–5000, but increase shutter speed to 30–40 seconds (a tripod will be required).
Shooting Techniques: From the Milky Way to Star Trek
Different objects require different approaches. Here are the techniques that have been proven:
1.The Milky Way
Best time: March to October (in the northern hemisphere), 23:00 to 3:00 a.m. Use PhotoPills to find the galactic center (the brightest part).
- 📷 ISO 3200–5000, exposure 20–25 c, diaphragm f/1.7–f/2.0.
- 🎯 Focus: manually on the brightest star (increase preview).
- 🔄 Shooting in RAW + 3-5 frames for subsequent stacking in Sequator or StarStaX.
2.Star tracks
We need to capture the rotation of the Earth.
- ⏱️ Series of pictures with an interval of 30-60 seconds (total 50-100 frames).
- ⚙️ Exposure 15-20 seconds, ISO 1600-2500 (to avoid over-lighting).
- 🎥 Processing in StarStaX (Lighten mode).
3. The moon and planets
You need a telephoto lens here (for example, 5x zoom on Xiaomi 13 Ultra. settings:
- 🌕 ISO 100–400, exposure 1/100–1/500 (c) (the moon moves rapidly!).
- 🔍 Use Pro Mode in the regular camera or GCam with disabled HDR.
- 🖼️ For the detailed craters, take a look at RAW and process in RegiStax.
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To capture the Milky Way, be sure to go out of town: light pollution in megacities makes it invisible even to flagship cameras. Check the pollution map at lightpollutionmap.info
Post-processing: how to unlock potential RAW-file
Raw pictures of the starry sky look dull - it's normal! RAW We use Adobe Lightroom (free mobile version) or Darktable (for PC).
Basic processing steps:
- Exposure adjustment: Increase Exposure to +1.5…+2.5 EV.
- Contrast and clarity: Contrast +30, Clarity +20 (but don't overdo it, or artifacts will appear).
- Luminance Noise 30–50, Color Noise 25–40.
- Color correction: Increase Vibrance on +15 (not Saturation!).Slide Temperature towards blue (3500–4000K) natural-looking.
Local edits
For stacking (combining several frames), use:
- 🖥️ Sequator (Windows) – automatically aligns frames and removes noise.
- 📱 StarStaX (mobile) – simple interface, but less settings.
- 🌌 DeepSkyStacker (for advanced) – supports calibration frames (dark/flat/bias frames).
Example of processing in Lightroom for Xiaomi 13 Ultra:
Basic settings:
- Exposure: +2.0
- Highlights: -50
- Shadows: +70
- Whites: -30
- Blacks: -15
- Texture: +20
- Dehaze: +15
Tone curve:
- Raise the average tones (input: 50, output: 65)
- Dim the lights (input: 80, output: 70)
HSL- Correction:
- Blue: Hue +10, Saturation +15
Purple: Luminance-10 (removes purple artifacts)⚠️ Attention: During processing RAW Don’t use Auto in Lightroom – it often picks up ISO It's all over the sky and it adds unnecessary noise!
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Even experienced photographers face challenges.-5 Mistakes in shooting stars on Xiaomi:
- 🔴 Blurred stars: The reason: too long exposure without considering the rule 500 (maximum exposure = 500 / focal length. For example, for Xiaomi 13 Ultra on the main module (23 mm): 500 / 23 ≈ 21 Exceeding this value results in a lubrication due to the rotation of the Earth.
- 🟣 Purple spots: Cause: chromatic aberration or matrix overheating. Solution: Reduce ISO 1-2 steps or use the correction in Lightroom (Defringe) → Purple Amount +20).
- ⚪ Too dark: The reason: wrong white balance or underexposure. Solution: shoot in the RAW and raise Exposure in the processing phase, not increase ISO cell-wise.
- 🟡 Yellow: The cause: light pollution from cities. Solution: shoot in format RAW Adjust Temperature to blue (3,000–4000K) editorially.
- ⚫ Noise as 'snow': Cause: High ISO + Solution: use stacking (combining 5-10 frames) or shoot on a small array. ISO 1600 30s exposure.
The secret trick for Xiaomi with AMOLED-screens: before shooting, turn on the night mode with minimal brightness and warm color temperature (2500K). This will prevent the matrix from illuminating from the display when viewing frames in the field.