A video endoscope has a strobe lamp operable in a mode wherein the strobing is synchronized to a selected tone or a periodic vibration in a patient, such as from the vocal cords, and is alternatively operable in a mode wherein the strobing is so rapid so as to appear as a substantially continuous light source. In the second mode, wherein the resulting image is to be displayed by a video system, the trigger circuit for operating the lamp is supplied with the video signal so that the lamp is triggered during either the horizontal or vertical blanking interval so that triggering of the strobe lamp does not cause interference in the video picture.