Working with a Light Tent

So, I've gotten my first light tent and studio lights, and I'm trying to work out how to use them. I'm currently working with my point-and-shoot Polaroid, which I realize isn't ideal. Still, I should be able to tweak get some decent photos.

Looking these over after my photo shoot, a few things are clear to me:

1. Lighting overkill! Need to adjust the lighting to be less harsh. I have a ton of lights to use, and I basically used them all. Obviously a bit too much here.
2. Need to get the camera closer. I have to use the "Macro" setting for close ups, but it looks like a few of these weren't close enough to focus in.
3. Turn down the Sharpness setting. I bumped it up to High thinking sharper was better, but it appears to have made the pictures grainy. >_<

Anyone else have any tips? I'm also hoping to have access to a better camera at some point (a couple family members are willing to let me borrow theirs...), so feel free to chime in with tips for better cameras as well.

Click for slightly larger versions.






Ignore the fact that I blatantly caught the side of the light tent here... lol

Thanks to Amoré for putting up with his crazy mom and her room of burning light.

Still experimenting with this. I used fewer lights and moved them back a bit from the side walls of the tent, but it still seems as though the pictures are too bright. I'm not certain if the tent is really too bright or if my camera is trying to overcompensate when I turn off the flash.

I may try a different camera just to see if it makes a difference. I could also try moving the lights farther back or using more diffuse light sources versus bare bulbs.