Even with a tripod, I had some difficulties, any tips? I used the close-up mode, but I''m wondering if I should back off a little and just crop the picture for the close-up.
Natural daylight (and definitely no flash) is your best bet.
Use the macro setting, but don''t zoom in so close your camera won''t focus.
Cropping the pic in Photoshop afterwards is a great technique to use.