Getting ready to use Time Machine restore. Need advice.

I use time machine regularly to restore the odd file here and there. All I do is open time machine and search out the file or files I require. I highlight them and hit restore. At that point in time the files will come forward and will start restoring themselves. If you happen to grab a duplicate of a file you still have currently, it will ask if you want to replace it or keep both. Time machine is almost bomb proof. I have never done a complete backup, just grabbed the files I required only and go from there. If you are worried, try opening time machine and grabbing a simple file or document, try restoring it and you will see how simple it is to do. This will run you through the process and will ease your mind about trying something large like your photos. And it will not erase any files that are currently stored on your hdd. You would be promted before it can happen. Hope this helps.