The best way to do this is to actually open the image with the software that created it. Most of these applications register the file type used by the images, therefore when you double click that image it automatically open the Windows Explorer or the software's internal explorer to browse through the files.
The tools also can check the files contained in the image and then when you start a new backup, there is the possibility to add the missing ones and the ones that have changed since the previous backup. Look through the settings. I know there is this option in Acronis TrueImage Home, the software I use for backup.
