Skip save the dates ?

“Save the date” invites helped me a lot...also, I did use some of our engagement photos for the “save the date” invitations so you might be right on track

I’m really glad we sent Save the Dates, once people had those they started planning. About 70% of our guests are out of town (like across the country out of town) so they really needed to know the date further than 8 weeks to make sure they could get a few days off.
If i was coming in from out of town I’d rather know a 100% set date 5 months in advance than wait until the invitations come out. But i think the biggest factor is how many out of town guests you have.
As far as budget, we made ours on Shutterfly for $120 for I think 95 invites? If you did ones without pictures it would be even cheaper. Something to consider

Actual Save the Date Cards are a recent invention. They are totally unnecessary. Those people who need advance notice for planning schedule and travel , can be told in person, over the phone, or emailed the info. Avoid a group email, as many people have spam filters that trash them. You can copy the same email, but put an individual address on it. Or if you send letters or cards for another reason, enclose info then make sure to include, the formal invitation will be sent out ____month. If you wanted to send sweetheart pictures, put them on a blank card for Thank You notes. Those will be sent out within two weeks of receiving your first gifts. You receive most actual gifts before the wedding, usually, not just shower gifts. And sometimes people send them as far in advance as 4-5 months before the wedding.

Time got away from me also, no save the dates. Oh well... Hopefully most can make it to our Friday night wedding.

I don't think you gave to do picture save the dates if you really want to send them there's tons of non photo ones

I would just hop onto one of the wedding invitations sites (zazzle, etsy, etc) and find a cute worded Save the Date to send out. It doesn't have to be a photo and you could even play on the idea of "yes we realize this is coming up quick" in a cute and playful way.

You can always choose STD’s that don’t use photos. That way you can go ahead and select a style now, order them, and likely have them sent our by the 6 month mark (which is when they are typically sent out anyway). With a Friday wedding, I would definitely sent STD’s! However, if you do choose to forego them (which is also completely fine), I’d probably sent your invitations about 10 weeks before your wedding, instead of the traditional 8 weeks.

I sent mine around 7mo. Mostly because I wanted ppl to know the date and reserve it for us, & so my out of state family can plan ahead if they choose to come. In ur case sending a STD is the smartest thing so ppl know ahead of time to plan ahead and plan to take time off from work whether they have to leave early or take the day off.

Save The Dates are 100% a fad and you don't have to do them.
The only reason we are sending them out is because we are having a long engagement and my family takes forever to make plans so they need heavily advanced warning.

I would just send out save the dates ASAP with any nice photo of the two of you (doesn’t have to be your professional engagement photos). Can you just dress up and have a friend or relative take a nice pic of you?