A transition in which one element fades out while its replacement fades in, overlapping in time so the change reads as a swap rather than a removal and an arrival.

Example Usage

Crossfade between the two album covers instead of cutting. The swap should feel continuous.
ABtimeopacitymix
Fig 1.2 Crossfade

The crossfade is the default transition for unrelated content, and a cop-out for related content. If the next state is spatially or structurally connected to the last one, a morph or a directional move explains the change; a crossfade just admits you didn’t model it.