For the small-batch ceramic artist, glaze testing is a critical yet chaotic process. Notes scatter, photos are inconsistent, and crucial data like firing logs and performance metrics become disconnected from the visual result. This disconnection makes replicating success and diagnosing failure a challenge of memory, not methodology.
The solution is systematic visual logging, transforming subjective photos into searchable, objective data. This is where AI-powered organization shines, turning your glaze archive into an intelligent asset.
The Standardized Studio Shot
Consistency begins with capture. Always use the same, simple “stage”: a non-reflective mid-grey matte card. This eliminates variables like your wooden table or changing sunlight, ensuring the AI or your eye assesses only the glaze. Before firing, assign a unique Test ID (e.g., 250415-Shino01). Post-firing, take your photo on this standard backdrop.
Logging with a Lens: The AI-Ready Workflow
The power comes from linking that image to structured data in a free digital notebook like Obsidian or Notion, or even a dedicated album in Google Photos. For each test, create a new log entry with the Test ID and link it to your master recipe file. Crucially, fill in key fields:
Firing Log: Cone, atmosphere, peak temp, hold time.
Application Notes: Dip or brush? Number of coats? Sieved?
Performance: Did it run, craze, or fit the clay body?
Objective Description: “Rutile blue breakout on iron amber base” (not “cranberry red”).
Tags: Add at least 5, like `#crystalline`, `#cone10_reduction`, `#glossy`.
Unlocking Advanced AI Search
This structured, visual database enables queries impossible with a physical notebook or scattered photos. Before mixing a production batch, you can review the visual log. Did the last test show minor pinholes? Note to sieve twice. You can then ask your system: “Show me all glazes with a gloss meter reading >70 GU that are also stable on vertical surfaces,” or “Find all tests where a blue crystalline formation occurred.” This moves you from hunting to instant, reliable recall.
For a comprehensive guide with detailed workflows, templates, and additional strategies, see my e-book: AI for Small-Batch Ceramic Artists & Potters: How to Automate Glaze Recipe Calculation and Batch Consistency Tracking.