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Honestly? That image would make me proud as a beginner anywhere. But not as the result of the imaging time and $$$ you have invested.
It depends on from where your pleasure (and displeasure) comes.
My pleasure in astrophotography doesn't come from spending money after detailed consideration and acquiring knowledge about bits and peaces I need to buy, nor from DIY improvement projects. Or from pushing a button to my fully automated setup in an obs.
My pleasure in AP comes from taking out the loupe and investigate and understand what's visible, afterwards.
That's why your Sculptor result wouldn't encourage me to continue, at all. No joy in it for me. If it were the very beginning of the road for me, the very first imaging result, I'd continue 'cause there'd be hope I could approach a quality level which gives me the joy described before.
But you've been "at it" for 10 years now as a search in IIS shows, going through the Deep Space forum threads you created over the years.
So here's my question: what exactly did you enjoy most in those past 10 years? Was it the DIY part of the hobby? Or the technical thinking required in handling in mechanics, optics and post-processing software? Or was it the moments when you first pushed the curves in PI on a dark stack and the colourful, wispy details of a PN appear and give you an endorphin kick?
Those are mere examples I can empathically imagine. I'd suggest you ask yourself and find answer[s]: what are the details that gave or give you joy in astrophotography?
'Cause what your other thread and this one make me think is that the rational side in you is willing to give up an annoying part in your life but the addict in you (the one in search for that endorphin kick) is not letting go.
Don't let the addict in you get addicted to the "annoyed neurotransmitters" cause that would lower your psychological wellbeing in a fundamental way, making your inner addict addicted to depressing actions to get the kick out of depressing neurotransmitter.
Go and find out which moments or areas a really giving you pleasure. From that knowledge, a future hobby will show itself. One that'll give you joy and appease the addict in you with positive brain chemicals.
Sorry for the long read and bad English. But I really think my viewpoint here is valuable just because it's so different from the others'.
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