I know how to add a material to a plane and then apply an Image Texture to that plane. I know how to make it appear in the 3D Viewport, Edit Mode, and the final render.
I want a way to make one Image Texture fade into another one using purely material nodes. This should be able to be achieved via two keyframes that are visible in the Timeline or Dope Sheet. I have tried applying two textures to one material and two separate textures onto two separate materials, though I have found that I can't particularly assign two materials at once without scripting or the compositor. These are my questions, basically. They're fairly related, so I figured I'd ask them both at once.
How can I set up an Image Texture to "fade off" (dissolve into a Diffuse BSDF or other blank material) in an animation render on a plane object?
Second, how can I make an image fade transition, via two frame keys in an animation render without the compositor or scripting? Is this possible on precisely one plane or surface, or must I use two coinciding surfaces?