diff --git a/qemu-img.texi b/qemu-img.texi
index 72dabd6b3e..90c7eab4a8 100644
--- a/qemu-img.texi
+++ b/qemu-img.texi
@@ -244,6 +244,9 @@ only the differences from @var{backing_file}. No size needs to be specified in
 this case. @var{backing_file} will never be modified unless you use the
 @code{commit} monitor command (or qemu-img commit).
 
+If a relative path name is given, the backing file is looked up relative to
+the directory containing @var{filename}.
+
 Note that a given backing file will be opened to check that it is valid. Use
 the @code{-u} option to enable unsafe backing file mode, which means that the
 image will be created even if the associated backing file cannot be opened. A
@@ -343,6 +346,9 @@ created as a copy on write image of the specified base image; the
 @var{backing_file} should have the same content as the input's base image,
 however the path, image format, etc may differ.
 
+If a relative path name is given, the backing file is looked up relative to
+the directory containing @var{output_filename}.
+
 If the @code{-n} option is specified, the target volume creation will be
 skipped. This is useful for formats such as @code{rbd} if the target
 volume has already been created with site specific options that cannot
@@ -490,6 +496,9 @@ The backing file is changed to @var{backing_file} and (if the image format of
 string), then the image is rebased onto no backing file (i.e. it will exist
 independently of any backing file).
 
+If a relative path name is given, the backing file is looked up relative to
+the directory containing @var{filename}.
+
 @var{cache} specifies the cache mode to be used for @var{filename}, whereas
 @var{src_cache} specifies the cache mode for reading backing files.