Questions about resizing and uploading pictures ...

I have set up a desktop folder, and can store my resized pictures there through the export function in iPhoto. When I export though, there doesn't seem to be any way to export directly to that folder. Instead, I have to export to the desktop, then drag all those files into my desktop folder. Is there any way to export my resized photos directly into that folder without having to first go to the desktop, then the folder? It just seems like extra steps.

Another nuisance I'm encountering is uploading to sites like eBay and PhotoBucket. If I chose to browse files on my computer, all that opens is the iPhoto icon rather than individual image files. I know I can drag and drop, but is there any way of directly accessing either the individual images in iPhoto or the desktop shortcut which contains my resized images?

I am coming off years of working with Windows, and their system of simply opening My Pictures and selecting the images you want to upload seems much simpler than this.

I am running OS X Mavericks with a MacBook Air 2013.

Thanks for any help.