The red bodies of male Autumn Meadowhawk dragonflies (Sympetrum vicinum) make them relatively easy to spot. However, when they choose to perch on foliage that matches their coloration, they can sometimes be well camouflaged.
The first photo shows an Autumn Meadowhawk perched on some kind of red vegetation (Virginia Creeper ?) at Huntley Meadows Park last Thursday. The red leaves really help to give the image a feel of autumn.
In the second image, the dragonfly stands out a bit more, but the dying leaves provide an artistically pleasing backdrop for the beautiful little dragonfly—I love this composition a lot.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
How you even spot them is beyond me! Must be like searching or certain shells at the shore?
Most of the time, Molly, I depend on movement to detect these little dragonflies. My eyes are attuned to spotting the dragonflies when they are flying and I attempt to track them until they land.