A freelance photographer accused of starling a horse being ridden by Madonna has denied any involvement in the incident.

Thomas Hinton told the New York Daily News he was not present when the singer fell from the horse while staying with friends in The Hamptons.

"I arrived more than 10 minutes after she fell, and I was shooting from the street," he said.

Over the weekend, Madonna's publicist Liz Rosenberg said the singer had suffered minor injuries” in the fall, which occurred after a member of the paparazzi "jumped out of the bushes".

But Hinton added: "I don't know what [Rosenberg] is talking about."

Madonna was treated in a hospital in Southampton before being discharged.

The incident is the singer's second reported fall from a horse in the last four years.

In 2005, Madonna sustained three cracked ribs and a broken collarbone after she fell while riding at her home in England.

Meanwhile, Madonna has been told today that she will find out on May 4 whether she is allowed to adopt an African girl from the country of Malawi.

(by Jason Gregory)