An intelligent endoscopic light source system for controlling the intensity of a light source, including a light source emitting light at a first intensity, an attenuator positioned to receive light from the light source at a first intensity and movable to pass light from the light source at a second intensity, a sensor mounted to the attenuator for measuring the first intensity, and a controller for receiving the intensity measurement from the sensor and moving the attenuator to pass light at a desired second intensity.