Transitions

Transitions are techniques that are used to cut from one scene to another and look easy on the eye in the process. A few examples of transitions include:

Fade Out:
This is when the screen fades out to black at the end of scene, it is usually used if a day has just finished or could maybe be used at the end of a film. It is used to indicate an amount of time passing and can be used to give the audience a short break.

Fade in:
This is when the screen fades into an image from black. It could be used alone maybe at the start of a film or if something completely new starts within a film or it can be used to continue from fade out, for example if fade out is used to indicate the end of a day, fade in could be used for the start of the next day.

Dissolve:
This is when one image slowly disappears as a new one appears. It usually indicates the end of a scene and the beginning of a new one.

Wipe:
This is when one part of the screen literally wipes over the rest of the screen. Wipes are not really used in films because they look comic-bookish and don't fit in with most movies. They could possibly be used in a superhero, comic book style film.