Television Transitions

COURTESY:  Sony Vegas Movie Studio

COURTESY:
Windows Movie Maker

                In television, a transition is the way you change from one picture to another.  The most common, and least obtrusive, transition is the cut; an instant switch between pictures.  Other transitions are reserved for specific situations; a dissolve, or gradual fade from one picture to another, is used to indicate the passage of time or a change in location.  Other flashy transitions are used, and often overused, to get attention regardless of the pictures at both ends of the transition.

                The wipe replaces an old picture with a new one “wiping out” the old one.  A squeeze wipe shoves the old picture out as the new one squeezes in to replace it.  In the digital age, an infinite number of transitions are available to the video producer, and you can make your own if the choices aren’t enough.

                How do you adjust to change?  Do you make a cut – instantly replacing the old with the new and moving on?  Do you need to take your time and gradually make the change?  Do you wipe out old feelings and thoughts and overwhelm them with the new reality?  Do you shove your feelings out of the way and replace them with a new attitude?  Perhaps this analogy is only meaningful to video producers but I think it would benefit us all to think about our methods of adjusting to change?  The best approach, I suppose, is to use the transition that serves us and the situation the best.  How do we expand our repertoire for dealing with change?

                I’ve asked more questions than given answers, haven’t I?  What do you think?