transition instead, which describes how that scene arrives from the one before it.
The blend is taken out of the two clips, not added to the timeline, so a transition never makes the render longer.
The seven kinds
crossfade dissolves one picture into the other. fade goes through the background colour between them, which reads as a chapter break. slide moves the new clip in over the old one, push shoves the old one out of frame, and both take a direction. wipe reveals the new clip along a moving edge whose shape you choose. zoom scales into the new clip. none is the hard cut, and it is the default because it is what professional editors use for almost every join.
Every one below joins the same two shots, so they can be compared.
crossfade
fade, through the background
slide, direction left
push, direction left
wipe, shape circle
zoom
Wipe shapes
edge is a straight line travelling in direction. circle opens from the centre, box opens as a rectangle, and barnDoorHorizontal and barnDoorVertical split from the middle outwards.
How long it can be
A transition cannot be longer than either clip it joins. Ask for more and the render clamps it to what fits and the job carries a warning, so a template built for long clips still works when a short one arrives. Validate reports the same warning before you spend anything.How to use them
Professionals cut. Keep crossfades under 10% of your joins and pick ONE decorative style (slide or zoom) per video, at section boundaries only.
Every field is in the transition reference.