To safely get a 32bit or 24 bit picture to use with effects in this plugin use the EnsurePictureBits function.
This function will examine the src picture that is passed to it and return it unchanged if it is considered safe for use for the effects in this plugin. If it is not safe then a new copy of the picture will be created internally that is a safe 32bit or 24 bit picture.
This function can be very fast since it will only copy the original picture when it does not fit the required specs for a 32 bit or 24 bit picture.
This function is only for usage with effects that do not alter the original image. This is very important to remember that the picture returned from this function is not mutable.