Damage on home developed C-41 negative

[horsemilk]

Hi all, I've got a question. I've recently been trying C-41 development at home. Last night I did a canister of 4x5 Portra 400, loaded on a Mod54. Unfortunately this didn't go so well, there was a definite cyan shift with this batch.


I'm really not sure if I did something wrong - either the chemicals weren't up to temp or I agitated too much or too little. With the Mod54 holder I didn't want to dislodge the film sheets by inverting the tank a whole lot, so I just turned the agitation spool every 30 seconds. I'm not sure if this counts as agitating more or less.


Aside from the cyan shift, there is another obvious problem; on this sheet there is a large smear in the emulsion. I think this is because this sheet was improperly loaded and was touching another sheet, although it could also be because it fell on the floor while it was drying. It's disappointing because I really liked this particular frame, can anyone tell me if I can get rid of this by re-bleaching or fixing this sheet?

 

[Rudeofus]

I can't guarantee you that rebleaching/refixing or rewashing will save your negative, but for all practical purposes these are the only things you can do to your negative. Judging from the low saturation of this shot there is a good chance that rebleaching/refixing/rewashing will help. What's the color of areas which have received no exposure, do these look like regular orange mask or are they dark?

 

[horsemilk]

I can't guarantee you that rebleaching/refixing or rewashing will save your negative, but for all practical purposes these are the only things you can do to your negative. Judging from the low saturation of this shot there is a good chance that rebleaching/refixing/rewashing will help. What's the color of areas which have received no exposure, do these look like regular orange mask or are they dark?

Thanks for the advice, the non exposed areas are the regular orange mask. I'm beginning to think this damage is from the negative falling on the ground rather than touching another sheet during development, as in that case it would have been stuck and I would have had trouble peeling them apart. Do you still suggest re-bleach/fixing?

 

[Rudeofus]

If the stain looks whitish milky on the negative, there is a remote chance that this is underfixed for whatever reason and can be salvaged by refixing. I'd try that at first, you can do it in room light and if you see a change within a minute or two you know what to do.