With the release of the iPhone 4S, shooting 1080p video has never been easier. Simply open the Camera app, flip the switch—and voila—you’re ready to start shooting some pretty impressive video. But the video camera app (if you can call it that) is very light on features. You can turn the flash on or off, but it’s more or less press record and see what happens.

You can import that video into Apple’s notorious iMovie app, add all sorts of transition and audio, and make an impressive little video out of it. But if you’re looking to make something more serious you’ll need better video editing for iPad (like Reel Director) or if you want to film with filters and “lenses” you’ll need a different app entirely. Luckily, there are plenty in the App Store that help you do everything from webcast to TiltShift.

Reel Director For iPad

iMovie is a good program for anyone trying to make quick and dirty videos, but if you’re interested in making real shorts on your iOS device, you’re going to want something with a little more complexity—like Reel Director. Reel Director utilizes an interface that will be more common to traditional video editors and it comes packed with far more options than Apple’s option.

For one, you can actually make cuts in Reel Director. This allows for shorter, less fussy clips. You can add dozens of transitions between these clips (much more than the lame handful iMovie tossed our way). There are tons of options for titles as well, so you can kiss those silly iMovie themes goodbye.

We love iMovie for its simplicity, but burning time trying to make it work for more complex situations is not a good idea. Pick up ReelDirector and keep living in the past.

Qik Video For iPhone

Qik is the best social option of the bunch. Made by Skype Software, there’s no doubt that its main emphasis is on Video Chat. But that’s not all it’s got under the hood. Qik is a vlogger’s dream, with a Record & Share feature that will have you live recording just about everything on earth. Live recording can be done via 3G, and pop off a quick note that you’re broadcasting to Twitter and Facebook. Once you start broadcasting you can change a few number of effects like digital zoom (up to 4x) and a handful of iChat-esque distortion filters to make your face huge or genuinely gnarly.

But if you’re looking for still more, you can subscribe to Qik Premium for unlimited video storage, a Qik desktop app, Priority support, and a whole lot more. Those features will cost you $4.99 a month, but you can give it a spin for 30 days for free.

8mm Vintage Camera For iPad

If you think 8mm videos are in the past, well then you’ve never met a hipster. The simple fact is that scratched-lenses and awkward filters are being applied frequently… If you think it’s dumb and worthless, you might not like 8mm Vintage Camera, but if you’re intrigued you’ll probably end up loving the simplicity and classic style the app represents.

8mm Vintage records everything in various contrasts, but all in Black and White, which makes composing shots a bit less stressful. There are several film types (which work identically to filters) and can be switched on the fly. There are several other buttons to push and poke, but they’re all very limited in functionality-8mm is an app that is meant to get out of your way, so you can focus on the filming. It works and we love it, but if you want more from your shots, you can always save them to your Camera Reel and then import them straight to your favorite video editing software.

TiltShift For iPad

Tilt-shifting is a style of photography/editing that has gained significant popularity as of late. Selective blur is applied to make the subject of a photograph look tiny, like model train tiny. There’s some argument over whether apps like TiltShift constitute “real tilt-shifting” because real tilt-shifting means you tilt and shift a lens. But if you don’t know that, you won’t care, for two reasons 1) The iPhone doesn’t have a lens that can be tilted, nor shifted and 2) TiltShift does an admirable job faking it.

TiltShift gives you a handful of pictures they supply you with, before trying to take a few of your own. Sure, TiltShift is the only app on the list that doesn’t take videos, but every good video needs a little b-roll.

See Also:

• Convert DVD To iPad
• Best iPad Video Converter | Miro Review
• Fix Frozen iPad Video Apps
• How To Use iPhone 4S | At A Glance