1. A method of detecting smoke in a monitored area containing a light source, said method comprising the steps of: capturing, at a point in said monitored area that is distant from said light source at a prescribed frequency, a sequence of two-dimensional, pixel bitmaps of the video images of said light source; storing said sequence of two-dimensional, pixel bitmaps; extracting from said stored sequence of bitmaps those pixels that make up a bright spot area within each of said bitmaps that is due to the presence of said light source in said monitored area, wherein said extractions yield a sequential collection of bright spot areas having characteristics including a distribution of different brightness values observed across the spatial extent of said bright spot areas; and identifying an increase in diversity of the different brightness values observed across the spacial extent of said bright spot areas, based on said sequential collection, as being indicative of the presence of smoke in said monitored area acting to diffuse the light from said light source.