Seagate External Hard Drive

I purchased a Seagate 1T external hard drive that was preformatted for MAC.
Also, I am running Snow Leopard right now on my MAC.
I backed up my files using Time Machine....No Problem..

Now I want to view the photos or Movies that are backed up.
When I try to open a photo, I-Photo launches and I get a message that I need to select a different Library.. I do this by holding down the Option key and opening I-Photo. I am given a screen that allows me to select a new library. I click on the Seagate device, but the file does not open... It goes back to the original message about needing to select a new library...
I am confused... It seems I am doing exactly what I need to do, but I keep getting this loop.
Am I doing something wrong? Is their a better / easier way?

Your post is a little confusing.

What is on your Seagate drive? I would suspect from what you describe - you would see a sparsebundle file - which is time machine's backup file.

Did you copy an iPhoto library to the Seagate drive as well? (I have done this and it works fine) It would be called something like iPhoto Library.photolibrary

Can you give more info/screenshots/details?

I am new to this, so I think it must be a 'sparse bundle file'. Time machine did a complete backup of my entire system, so the directory structure on the external hard drive is an exact mirror image of my MAC. I simply want to open a photo that was backed up.

I did not copy an IPhoto library as well, only did the Time Machine backup.

When I go into the External Hard Drive, I locate my photos and try to open one.
This is when IPhoto opens, and informs me that I need to select a New Library.

I cannot send a screen shot as I am not home right now. (also how do I capture a screen shot to send)

Sorry for the lack of knowledge, but really appreciate your help!

Taking Screenshots in Mac OS X - Mac Guides

Time machine basic info. Yes you can click through the sparsebundle but there is a nice interface too.
Apple - Find Out How - Mac Basics
Mac Basics: Time Machine

Can you right click (ctrl-click) and select open with preview?
Mac Basics: Preview

Thank you for the help.
I was able to use the tutorial to access the files.
I have 1 more question.
How do I access a single file from the backed up photo library?
I can access individual slide shows, but what if I want to access a single photo (not in a slide show). Obviously, I don't want to restore the entire library.
Thanks again.

How do I access a single file from the backed up photo library?
I can access individual slide shows, but what if I want to access a single photo (not in a slide show). Obviously, I don't want to restore the entire library.
Thanks again.

Click to expand...

Open iPhoto and bring it to the front. (active app) Now attach your Time Machine drive and enter Time Machine. Select the date you wish to restore from and bring that forward. You should now see your iPhoto library from that date. From there you can select a single photo or all photos to restore.