Fine art photographer James Katsipis of Montauk is being honored alongside WhiteWall, which has been awarded the 2026 TIPA World Award for the Best Photo Lab Service category by the international expert jury of the Technical Image Press Association. The award recognizes WhiteWall’s Shopify integration as a scalable e-commerce solution for professional photographers, artists, and galleries.
The TIPA World Awards are among the most prestigious honors in the international photography and imaging industry. Every year, 25 editorial teams from top photography magazines and platforms select the most innovative products and services of the past year.
“For over twenty years, the Atlantic Ocean has been my primary muse, shaping both my life and my lens. My photography style is a technical and emotional study of the natural flow of the elements — capturing the raw, cinematic energy of the coast from my home tracks in Montauk to distant shores all over the world,” said Katsipis.
Katsipis, who has a gallery on Main Street in Montauk, has been using WhiteWall’s Shopify integration to sell his work online. What makes the difference for him is the seamless connection between his shop and WhiteWall’s production, which takes time-consuming processes off his hands, freeing him up for creative work and simultaneously giving him direct access to customers worldwide. This enables him to consistently broaden his reach and concentrate entirely on what matters most — his photography.
“I launched my Shopify store two years ago. Before that, I had used a different platform. I needed to give my work a permanent home that could also integrate my physical gallery in Montauk, as well as my online store,” he said. “Everything is all tracked in one place now. My online store is a curated gallery where I offer fine art prints, from my limited edition ‘Mermaids of Montauk’ series to my fine art landscapes and abstract ocean series ‘Blurz.’ It’s designed to be clean and immersive, letting the imagery tell my story.”