1. A method for creating a virtual dental image ( 30 , 41 ) from a 3D volume ( 1 ) comprising volumetric image data, characterized in that a sub-volume ( 8 , 12 , 15 , 18 ) is defined in said 3D volume ( 1 ) and that for this sub-volume ( 8 , 12 , 15 , 18 ) there is generated a virtual projection image ( 30 , 41 ) from a specific X-ray imaging direction ( 11 ) by computation of said volumetric image data in said X-ray imaging direction ( 11 ), wherein the process of defining said sub-volume ( 77 ) involves the exclusion of specific unwanted sub-objects from said sub-volume ( 77 ) using a segmentation technique or the attribution of lower weighting to said sub-objects when computing said volumetric image data, in order to facilitate the examination of said sub-objects included in said sub-volume ( 77 ).