A video surveillance system is provided for recording and executing camera operation patterns. Each pattern includes a plurality of records having a camera condition field and a count field. The system reads a camera condition and writes the condition to memory in a pattern record. The system compares each new camera condition with the condition stored in memory, and records a newly read condition into a new pattern record if the new camera condition is different from the condition data stored in the most recent pattern record. Otherwise, the count field is updated in the most recent pattern record by incrementing a count data therein. Patterns are executed by sequentially moving the camera through the camera condition stored in the pattern records, and keeping the system at a particular condition for a duration equal to the count data of each pattern record multiplied by a predetermined time interval.