System and method for tracking objects and obscuring fields of view under video surveillance

A system and method is provided for processing video signals, tracking objects in view, and blanking fields of view in video surveillance systems. The system includes a camera having two rotational degrees of freedom, a display, and a combination of switches for routing the video signal. The displayed video signal is divided into an array of cells which may be individually masked, blanked, or blurred. The camera microcontroller captures and stores objects in view, and tracks such objects as the camera zooms, pans and tilts in spherical coordinates. Objects in view may be tracked and blanked by obscuring an agglomeration of the cells in response to a masking signal generated by the microcontroller.