Az ellenfény annyira erős, hogy a portré sötét marad.

Ellenfény is a compound noun. It is made from:

• ellen = against, opposite
• fény = light

So its literal sense is something like light from the opposite side, and in real usage it means backlight or backlighting. In photography, it refers to light coming from behind the subject, which can make the subject look dark.

Hungarian very often forms compounds like this as a single word.

Both a and az mean the. Hungarian has two forms of the definite article:

• a before a consonant sound
• az before a vowel sound

So:

• az ellenfény because ellenfény starts with a vowel sound
• a portré because portré starts with a consonant sound

This is similar to how English has a and an, but in Hungarian it happens with the definite article, not the indefinite one.

This is a very common Hungarian pattern meaning so ... that ...

In this sentence:

• annyira erős = so strong
• hogy = that
• a portré sötét marad = the portrait remains dark

So the structure is:

• annyira + adjective/adverb, hogy + clause

Examples:

• Annyira fáradt, hogy elalszik. = He/She is so tired that he/she falls asleep.
• Annyira hideg van, hogy nem megyünk ki. = It is so cold that we are not going out.

Yes, but it changes the meaning slightly.

• nagyon erős = very strong
• annyira erős, hogy ... = so strong that ...

So nagyon just gives intensity, while annyira often sets up a consequence.

Compare:

• Az ellenfény nagyon erős. = The backlight is very strong.
• Az ellenfény annyira erős, hogy a portré sötét marad. = The backlight is so strong that the portrait remains dark.

If you want the result part, annyira ... hogy is the natural choice.

Because Hungarian adjectives do not agree with the noun in this kind of predicate structure.

Here erős is not directly sitting before the noun like a strong light. Instead, it is part of the statement the backlight is strong.

So:

• Az ellenfény erős. = The backlight is strong.

The adjective stays in its basic form.

This is normal in Hungarian:

• A ház nagy. = The house is big.
• Az autók gyorsak. can occur when plural marking is needed in certain predicate patterns, but in many basic learner sentences the adjective itself is not behaving like it would in languages with full agreement systems.

The key point for this sentence: erős is simply the normal predicate adjective form.

Because portré is the subject of marad, not a direct object.

In Hungarian, -t marks the direct object. For example:

• Látom a portrét. = I see the portrait.

But here the portrait is the thing that remains dark:

• A portré sötét marad. = The portrait remains dark.

So it stays in the nominative form: portré, not portrét.

Marad means remains or stays.

So a portré sötét marad means the portrait stays dark or remains dark.

This is a little different from simply saying becomes dark. It suggests that, because of the strong backlight, the portrait does not get properly lit and therefore stays dark in the final result.

This verb is very common:

• Itthon maradok. = I am staying home.
• Csendben marad. = He/She remains quiet.
• Sötét marad. = It remains dark.

Both could be possible in some contexts, but they are not exactly the same.

• sötét lesz = becomes dark / will be dark
• sötét marad = remains dark / stays dark

In this sentence, marad emphasizes that the portrait ends up continuing in a dark state because the backlight is too strong. In photography, that is a very natural idea: the subject does not get enough light and therefore stays underexposed.

So marad feels more precise here.

Because Hungarian normally separates subordinate clauses with a comma.

Here:

• main clause: Az ellenfény annyira erős
• subordinate clause introduced by hogy: hogy a portré sötét marad

So the comma is required:

• Az ellenfény annyira erős, hogy ...

This is very common in Hungarian syntax.

It is a very normal, neutral word order.

The sentence first gives the cause or condition:

• Az ellenfény annyira erős = The backlight is so strong

Then it gives the consequence:

• hogy a portré sötét marad = that the portrait remains dark

That order is the most natural one for this kind of so ... that ... sentence.

Hungarian word order can be flexible, but this version sounds straightforward and standard.

In Hungarian, both verb placement and focus can affect the order, but sötét marad is the neutral, natural order here.

• sötét marad = remains dark

If you changed the order, it could sound marked or emphasize something different depending on context. For a learner, sötét marad is the form to remember in ordinary usage.

So this sentence is not doing anything unusual. It is just the standard way to say that the portrait remains dark.