A PMR writer is disclosed wherein one or more of a trailing shield, leading shield, and side shields are composites with a first section made of an anisotropic (-Ku) magnetic layer adjoining a gap layer and a second section comprised of an isotropic soft magnetic layer formed on a side of the first section that faces away from the main pole. There may be a non-magnetic Ru layer between each first and second section to prevent interlayer coupling. Each first section has a hard axis in a direction toward the main pole and is comprised of hcp-CoIr, dhcp-CoFe, a′-Fe—C, or NiAs-type Mn50Sb50 with a thickness from 50 to 500 nm. As a result, flux leakage from the main pole to a shield structure is reduced and area density is increased. A method for fabricating a composite shield structure is also provided.