1. A system for calibrating laser pulses from a laser eye surgery system using an image capture device, the system comprising: a known object positionable for imaging by the image capture device of the laser eye surgery system; a pulsed laser beam delivery system oriented for directing a pulsed laser beam onto a calibration surface, wherein a mark is left on the calibration surface when the pulsed laser beam is delivered and wherein the pulsed laser beam delivery system includes a variable aperture setting to adjust the laser beam diameter over time to leave a plurality of marks of variable diameters on the calibration surface so that, when the marks are imaged and the imaged marks on the calibration surface are compared to the image of the known object, a hysteresis of the variable aperture is determined; an image capture device for imaging the mark left on the calibration surface; and a processor for determining a calibration of a cross-sectional size, a cross-sectional shape and a cross-sectional location of the laser beam delivery system by comparing the imaged mark on the calibration surface to the image of the known object.