The print is truly the most important part of photography. It is the final product in a long series of challenges, from finding the shot, composing it just so and then processing it to get the color and the saturation just right, why would you then leave the final product - the print - up to someone else? While I understand that prints can be made cheaply, it just doesn't make a lot of sense to spend so much time and money on our cameras to then walk away from the creative process at the most critical point. Your print is what everyone will see and is what your skill as a photographer will be based upon.
In the same way as a cell phone takes decent photos, a photo lab produces decent prints but prints from a lab will never compare to the prints you can make. Things as simple as choosing the paper can make a huge difference in the final product. All paper is slightly different from one another even though it says "glossy" or "pearl" or "metallic" on the package. Finding that right paper to accent the image is everybit as satisfying and challenging as shooting that perfect photo was.
So if you have any inclination to make prints I suggest you run with it and buy a semi-professional printer like an Epson R2000 and a few types of paper and have at it. If you enjoy making photographs I guarantee you'll enjoy making prints.
